Liu Kang was born in the People's Republic of China,
and was a descendant of Kung Lao, the Shaolin monk who was defeated by
Goro five-hundred years ago. Liu Kang was a Shaolin
monk himself, and a former member of the secret White Lotus Society. Through
his entire life he had heard of the Mortal Kombat tournament, once a glorious
event but now corrupted by Shang Tsung's evil. At the
age of 24, he entered the tournament in the hopes of returning it to it's noble
origins. Arriving at Shang's island, Liu Kang refused to be intimidated by the
numerous skilled warriors that had gathered for the event. He defeated every
opponent he faced and found himself squaring off against Goro, the half-human,
half-dragon champion of Mortal Kombat. With his surprising speed and strength,
Liu Kang defeated and presumably killed Goro in a spectacular battle.
Surprised at Goro's defeat, Shang stood no chance and was himself defeated.
The old sorcerer fled through a dimensional portal, and Liu Kang had succeeded
in restoring the tournament's honor.
Returning to the Shaolin temple, Liu Kang was met with a devastating
sight. The temple lay in ruin, and every monk had been slaughtered. The
attack was in retaliation for Kang's victory over Tsung, and had been led by
Baraka. Learning that Shao
Kahn, the leader of the Outworld who had ordered the attack, was hosting a
second Mortal Kombat tournament, Liu Kang quickly entered to gain revenge.
Traveling alongside friend and fellow Shaolin monk Kung
Lao, Liu Kang journeyed into the Outworld.
As before, Liu Kang breezed through the lesser challengers in the
tournament. His disciplined fighting style was now fueled by pure rage, and
he had also received limited training from Rayden.
The results of the second tournament were almost identical to the first: Liu
Kang defeated Goro's successor, Kintaro, and then
Shao Kahn himself. Both he and Kung Lao realized that to kill Kahn would make
them no better than him, and the two left the defeated emporer and returned to
Earth.
After several months, the fully recovered Shao Kahn finally achieved
his dream of invading the Earth realm. Liu Kang found himself the prime target
of Kahn's extermination squads, as he posed the biggest threat to Kahn's rule
of the Earth. Eluding the squads, Liu Kang joined with Kung Lao and other
Earth warriors to oppose the Outworld invaders. Under the guidance of Rayden,
the warriors managed to push Kahn's armies back into the Outworld. During
this time, he had met Kitana, the true heir to the
throne of the Outworld. In exchange for her help in saving the Earth, Liu Kang
offered to help Kitana gain control of the Outworld. Kung Lao had perished
during the battles, and Liu Kang vowed to avenge his friend's death by ridding
the world of Kahn's menace once and for all. He and Kitana managed to defeat
Shao Kahn, and once again Kang's vengeance was satisfied. Before returning to
Earth, he was personally thanked by Princess Kitana for his help in saving the
Outworld.
Liu Kang spent the next few years trying to rebuild his shattered
life. One day, he received word that the Outworld had been invaded by
Shinnok and Kitana was being held prisoner. He
embarked on a one-man rescue mission, only to be repelled by Shinnok's forces.
He sought the help of Rayden, who had become his mentor since they had met in
the first Mortal Kombat tournament. He and Rayden gathered the mightiest of
Earth's warriors to once again travel to the Outworld to end the threat of
Shinnok.
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