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Huaiyan

Last updated 2026-08-08

The Arbiter-General who governs the Xianzhou Zhuming. Referred to as the Flaming Heart. As an individual bearing an elderly visage, the general stands as an oddity among the ever-youthful people of the Xianzhou.
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Huaiyan (Chinese: 怀炎) is one of the seven Arbiter-Generals of the Xianzhou Alliance's Cloud Knights, the Furnace Master of the Xianzhou Zhuming's Artisanship Commission, and an Emanator of The Hunt.[1][2]

Profile

Described as "strong and righteous," Huaiyan presides over the Xianzhou Zhuming, with his office at the Flamewheel Forge. He is said to be the longest-lived human aboard the Xianzhou.[5] He has unrestricted access to visit the Flint Emperor who is imprisoned in the Flamewheel Forge.[6] He has an adoptive granddaughter named Yunli[3] who enjoys collecting swords and has studied swordsmanship since her youth.[7]

History

Background

Huaiyan was a hot-blooded man in his younger days. If someone taunted him, he would have drawn his sword and fought.[8] Eventually he took in Yingxing, an outworlder boy, as an apprentice who would eventually go on to join the legendary High-Cloud Quintet and become The Xianzhou Luofu's Furnace Master. At some point, he took on another apprentice, Hanguang.[3] The very first assignment Huaiyan gave his disciples is 'What defines a blade?' He always says a name carries the weapon's destiny.[9]

Huaiyan sent Yingxing to recieve La Mancha, the leader of the Galaxy Rangers who was visiting the Zhuming. La Mancha offered to teach him how to fight and join the Galaxy Rangers, though Yingxing refused on both accounts. He stated that his life was too short to strike his enemies down, but the weapons he forged would far outlast him to complete the task. After La Mancha praised Yingxing, Huaiyan took pride in his disciple, but commented that the path he chosen would be difficult, stating "Forges wrought a million stars bright, irons craft heroes' soaring flight. Miniscule lights into martial might made, only with sharp blades are peace and plenty saved."[10]

When Baiheng and the Xianzhou Yaoqing's delegation visited the Zhuming, Huaiyan was willing to allocate three hundred fighter jets, twenty thousand thunder crossbows, and twenty thousand devastator glaives in response to Helm-Master Qingying's request for reinforcements for the Xianzhou Yaoqing's Heroncrest Fleet's fight against the borisin, but only a dozen or so personnel.[5] In his attempt to forge Shard Sword for Jingliu, Yingxing created a flawless and sharp, yet brittle blade, and hid it away in shame as he feared it would bring shame to their school. Though Huaiyan would later find and keep the unfinished blade, stating "Waste not the bounty of the world, but perfect it through craft." Since the day Yingxing left, he kept the blade hung in the hall, gazing upon it daily.[11][9]

Hanguang eventually became hailed as a rare genius craftsman not seen in the Flamewheel Forge since Yingxing after the Sedition of Imbibitor Lunae. However, he developed a penchant for forging Cursed Swords. One day, the Flamewheel Forge was overrun by visitors from afar. The chaos of the mob eventually broke out into a massacre. Hanguang was fatally stabbed by one of the swords he forged. Though many other people died, including his wife. After their deaths, Huaiyan adopted their daughter, Yunli.[3] Although he had retired several times already, with the change in circumstances, Marshal Hua had called General Huaiyan back to duty.[12] Whenever he tutors students himself and personally passes on his skills both as a craftsman and a soldier, these students would either become grandmasters who leave a mark in the annals as Furnace Masters or become Cloud Knights with names that thunder through the Alliance such as the Flamewheel Octet.[13]

Luminary Wardance Ceremony

At some point of Star Calendar Year 8100 (AE 2158)[14], the Zhuming delegation of Huaiyan and Yunli visited the Luminary Wardance Ceremony on the the Xianzhou Luofu. Huaiyan hosted the ceremony of receiving the sword Guyun from the Kalevala delegation, which was originally planned as the prize of the Wardance's winner. Upon hearing this, Guyun was enough of its destiny of bloodshed, and Argenti stole it from its case according to its will. The investigation team confronted Argenti and eventually learned the full story of Guyun and its original wielder, a nameless Cloud Knight who got stranded on Kalevala and helped their people defeat the borisin. Eventually, Yunli fulfilled its will by melting it down and reforging it into a Guzheng, which would then be placed in Aurum Alley as a memorial to the nameless Cloud Knight. Huaiyan prepared a spared sword as the Wardance's prize instead.[3]

Huaiyan and Feixiao were ordered by Marshal Hua to investigate the Luofu's Ambrosial Arbor Crisis. The only order Huaiyan received, however, was "Attend the Wardance and listen to Feixiao's questioning." Huaiyan trusted Jing Yuan's loyalty to the Luofu and the Alliance. He asked Yunli and Yanqing to train March 7th as a Wardance contestant on behalf of the Astral Express.[15]

Following the jailbreak of Hoolay, Huaiyan stepped in as the temporary commanding officer of the Seat of Divine Foresight and oversaw the Six Commissions' affairs on the Luofu. He ordered Yunli and the newly trained March 7th to act as the contestants of the fake Wardance, which was actually the Cloud Knights' trap for Hoolay. Feixiao would be in charge of scaring the wolves and cutting off their other means of escape, making Hoolay think that the Skysplitter would be his best way out. Given that the borisin already have insiders on the Luofu, Jing Yuan would be in charge of putting pressure on them, making them focus solely on keeping themselves safe. Then Huaiyan would go with the Sky-Faring Commission to guard the Jade Gate and ensure that things did not spiral out of control.[16][17]

After Hoolay was defeated, Jing Yuan, Feixiao and Huaiyan received a message from Yao Guang and learned the interrogation result of Luocha and Jingliu.[18] After the real Wardance was over, Yanqing and the Astral Express Crew said a formal farewell to Huaiyan and Yunli who were returning to the Zhuming.[19]

Phantasmoon Games

After Yingxing, now known as the Stellaron Hunter Blade, threw himself into the dead husk of Oroboros' within Planarcadia in order for it to devour Shuhu, the Emanator of Abundance that had since been imbued within Blade since the inciting incident of the Sedition of Imbibitor Lunae, Huaiyan appeared in Blade's dreams. He encouraged Blade to air out his grievances and regrets, the latter stating that his life had been built on nothing but mistakes and had reached its end, but Huaiyan encouraged him to "Forge it anew." He presented Blade with the unfinished blade from the forging of Shard Sword that he had kept all these years, having entrusted General Yao Guang to bring it to him.[9]

Missions and Events

Trailblaze Missions

Trailblaze Continuances

Companion Missions

Adventure Missions

Events

Character Mentions

Character Stories

CharacterStories

Character Voice-Overs

CharacterVoice-Overs

Readables

Items

Relics

HoYoLAB Articles

Gallery

Videos

Cameos

Trivia

  • Huaiyan is known by the following aliases:
    • The Flaming Heart (Chinese: 烛渊将军 zhúyuān jiāngjūn, "Abyss-illuminating General")

HoYoverse Shared VAs

Etymology

  • Huaiyan's name 怀炎 can mean "flame in heart" or "to embrace flame" in Chinese.

Other Languages

LanguageOfficial Name
EnglishHuaiyan
Chinese
(Simplified)		怀炎
Chinese
(Traditional)		懷炎
Japanese懐カイ炎エン
Korean회염
SpanishHuaiyan
FrenchHuaiyan
RussianХуайянь
ThaiHuaiyan
VietnameseHuaiyan
GermanHuaiyan
IndonesianHuaiyan
PortugueseHuaiyan

Change History

Introduced in Version 1.0 • Released in Version 2.4

Version 2.4

  • Huaiyan was released as a mission-exclusive NPC.

Version 1.0

  • Huaiyan was introduced.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Honkai: Star Rail (March 19, 2024). Pom-Pom's Intel | Emanator Special. HoYoLAB.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Trailblaze Mission, So Laughed the Masses: Serotonin Exposure Phobia
    "Mr. Meanie": The Emanators you speak of are nothing more than a tenth of a pebblePearl, a piece of woodEvanescia, and... hmm...
    "Mr. Meanie": Oh, and a warlordYao Guang!
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Companion Mission, Vita Infinita: Swords to Plowshares
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 千星纪游PV：「天干剑燥，小心火炉」, Honkai: Star Rail Bilibili. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Readable: Views of the Universe from a Starskiff: The Xianzhou Zhuming
  6. ↑ Readable: Ten-Lords Commission Criminal Directory
  7. ↑ Cosmodyssey: Board Encounter
  8. ↑ Trailblaze Continuance, Finest Duel Under the Pristine Blue (I): Emissary Mystique
    Huaiyan: Not at all. Taunted by Yunli like that, even a training dummy would be angry. You've taught your apprentice well. If it were me in my younger days, I'm afraid I'd have drawn my sword and fought.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Trailblaze Mission, The Lethe Below the Living: Primeval and Other Times
  10. ↑ Honkai: Star Rail (June 2, 2026). False Constance — Unkidnappable Little Yingxing. Twitter. Retrieved June 2, 2026.
  11. ↑ Data Bank, Characters, Mortenax Blade: Character Story: Part I
  12. ↑ Trailblaze Continuance, Finest Duel Under the Pristine Blue (I): Emissary Mystique
  13. ↑ Relic, Forge of the Kalpagni Lantern: Forge's Lotus Lantern Wick
  14. ↑ Readable: A Page From the Alchemy Commission's Official Gazette, Other Page of the Alchemy Commission Official Gazette
  15. ↑ Trailblaze Continuance, Finest Duel Under the Pristine Blue (I): By Words of Many
  16. ↑ Trailblaze Continuance, Finest Duel Under the Pristine Blue (II): At Dawn, To War
  17. ↑ Trailblaze Continuance, Finest Duel Under the Pristine Blue (II): I Shall Turn the Tide
  18. ↑ Trailblaze Continuance, Finest Duel Under the Pristine Blue (II): A Fugue From Beyond
  19. ↑ Adventure Mission: By Way of Old