I hope so hard that Phainon and Dan Heng will have some heart to heart in the upcoming quests, because if anyone can understand Phainon's feelings, I can definitely imagine Dan Heng here. He knows what the guy is going through.
Phaimon feels that he is unworthy of being one of the Chrysos Heirs, but especially The Deliverer. It is interesting that, after he was rejected by the Strife, we learn that "he became blinded by hatred and almost lost himself". I don't think the Strife's trial was to confront traumatic memories of the war itself; based on what Mydei had to do to become a demigod, I assume it was more about doubts. After all, Mydei's entire arc is for defining what a god of war means in the context of the numerous wars that led to his home's downfall. While Phainon definitely witnessed his share of bloodshed during the trial, the only memory of his homeland as seen from his perspective is that of Cyrene, where Phainon hears the prophecy for the first time and is referred to as The Deliverer. Phainon then does not reject the prophecy per se, although he is disappointed to realise that he would fight for the world. As he immediately states, he is not that interested in people outside Aedes Elysiae. Phainon doesn't mind fighting - but only for the sake of people he cares about. Those he later lost.
I suspect that, as players, we only get this particular memory because it is defining for Phainon's character, and even if he tries to act like The Deliverer, to earn the title and probably believe in it himself, deep down lives a memory that Phainon doesn't want to admit to - he doesn't care. He doesn't care about all these people. More than that - I have a theory that there is a growing anger in Phainon's soul, the destruction path he will most likely become, because it is his duty to put the welfare of this faceless group above those he really cares about.
Can the hero admit to this? That he would like to protect Trianne's life more than protect the world? That he cares more about a happy future for Mydei than happiness of nameless people? That in order to protect those he will never know, he will have to watch every Chrysos Heirs go to a predestined slaughter that he can only accept? And for what is being The Chosen One? To be alone again?
If Flame Reaver is really connected to Phainon, it can be that rage of sacrificing people for the world, until there is nothing left, until you secretly want to sacrifice the world instead?
And if those were Phainon's doubts, who would be better to weave into his story than Dan Heng? Although the details of what exactly happened when Imbibitor Lunae tried to resurrect Baiheng's soul are unsaid, we do know that he tried to save those he loved first. And in doing so, he doomed many, many others. Most likely - unknowingly. But such was the nature of Imbibitor Lunae, he chose those he cared about first and then had to face the consequences.
I think this could be a good next step on Dan Heng's path to accepting his past life, and by extension, his current sense of self. He not only knows how hard such decisions are, but also what lies ahead on the path once you made them. And perhaps when Phainon is deciding the future, Dan Heng will close another door in the past.
