As they headed toward Toph's temporary lodgings, she played it cool, introducing Li Ke as a traveler from the Earth Kingdom. Once inside, Li Ke met the rest of the crew.
There was a bald kid with a blue arrow on his head who looked like a total pushover, a guy with a boomerang and a spear who looked like he had zero luck with women, and a girl who looked like the group's "team mom"—mostly because the first thing she did was try to wipe the dirt off Toph's hands.
They were all floored—partly by the fact that Toph had managed to find a boyfriend so quickly, and partly by the report of Li Ke's dual-bending.
Li Ke soon learned their names. The "pushover" kid was Aang, the current Avatar. The girl was Katara, and the guy with the bad luck was her brother, Sokka. Over a tense conversation, he finally got the full story on why Zuko was chasing Azula and why she was so far gone.
"So, let me get this straight," Li Ke summarized, leaning back and spreading his hands. "Your dad was a terrible parent, your mom didn't show her enough love, and as a result, your sister grew up believing fear is the only way to interact with people. She pushed everyone away, lost everything when you beat her, and her entire worldview collapsed, leaving her completely insane."
He looked at Zuko. "She was a power-hungry tyrant who lost the throne to you, and the only reason she's out of a mental institution is because you thought a 'family road trip' to find your mom would heal your trauma?"
Li Ke sighed, his expression turning flat. "And her reason for trying to kill me was simply because I was in her way? Fine. Look, I can take care of her for you. I'll handle the body perfectly—no mess, no lingering guilt for you, no political headaches. All I ask in return is that you compensate me for the laptop and grenades she just blew up. How does that sound?"
After hearing the full breakdown of their history, Li Ke had only one real impression: the guy standing in front of him was an unnervingly good person.
To let a failed rival for the throne live—and then personally escort her across the world to find their mother just to heal her childhood trauma? Zuko's moral compass was off the charts. But the problem remained...
Li Ke had no idea who "Mai" or "Ty Lee" were, but it was crystal clear that Azula wasn't the type to appreciate a second chance.
"Hahaha! What's wrong with using fear?" Azula shrieked, her eyes wild as she glared at Zuko, completely ignoring Li Ke's presence. "Friendship and love are lies! You, Mai, and Ty Lee are the living proof of that!"
While Azula raved in her own world of madness, the rest of the group was very much grounded in reality. After hearing Li Ke's casual offer to "handle the body," they all turned as one to look at Toph.
"Uh, Toph? Is your boyfriend always this... extreme?" Sokka asked at the exact same time Aang blurted out, "Isn't that a bit much?"
Toph didn't hesitate. She reached out and cracked both of them across the back of the head with a firm fist. "What are you two whining about? Azula tried to murder him. He wanted to hit back. That's called common sense where I come from!"
Toph's expression was dead serious, her tone leaving no room for argument. The two men rubbed their heads, grumbling but too intimidated to say another word.
"Right. I take it you're not interested in my services, then," Li Ke said, pulling at the corner of his mouth. He decided there was no point in pushing the issue. "In that case, pay up. You can't expect me to just eat the cost of those damages."
Li Ke had no intention of footing the bill for a fried laptop and wasted grenades. Spanning Azula's life for Toph's sake was his limit; if they expected him to take a financial hit on top of that, he'd be tempted to see how Zuko handled a live frag in his lap.
"No problem at all," Zuko said instantly. He nodded to an attendant standing nearby, who produced a polished wooden box and handed it to Li Ke.
Li Ke took it casually, but his eyebrows shot up at the weight. When he flipped the lid, he found it packed with solid gold bars. Resting on top was a translucent pink gemstone the size of a ping-pong ball. Even a conservative estimate put the stone alone in the millions, not to mention the five kilograms of gold beneath it.
"This is just what we have on hand," Zuko said, his voice calm and utterly indifferent to the fortune he'd just handed over. "Since we're traveling, I need to keep some reserves, but I hope this covers your losses for now."
None of them seemed even slightly pained by the expense. Li Ke realized this wasn't just a team—it was a group of high-tier elites with deep pockets.
With the compensation secured, Li Ke had no reason to linger. He was ready to find a quiet spot and jump to the next world.
"Alright then. I'm heading out, Toph," he said, already pulling up the translucent Endless Traveler interface in his mind.
When Li Ke opened the travel interface, his jaw nearly hit the floor. The values had shifted again—every destination had undergone a "seasonal price hike" of 50 Energy Points.
You've got to be kidding me, he thought, a dry laugh bubbling in his chest.
He checked his current balance: 2,020 points. Then he looked at the cost to jump to Robin's world: 2,050 points. He was exactly thirty points short.
"Looks like I'm going to need a little... 'local assistance' to top off the tank," Li Ke muttered. His mind immediately went to the nearest high-end brothel. With Zuko's gold bars and this world's ancient aesthetic, he was more than ready to experience some old-world luxury and decadence to bridge the gap.
But before he could make a move, a small, firm hand clamped onto his shirt.
"And where do you think you're going? You aren't going anywhere today!"
Toph was glaring in his general direction, her grip like iron. In her mind, since Li Ke had come all this way to find her, it was time for her to make good on the "promises" she'd made back in the blocky world.
Li Ke looked down at her... admittedly petite frame, and his lip twitched. "If I said I'm really not in the mood right now—"
Before he could finish, stone pillars erupted from the ground around him, and his feet were instantly encased in solid earth.
"Well, you're definitely interested in Bending, aren't you?" Toph countered, her face flushing slightly but her voice steady. "You might be handy with fire, but your Waterbending is a mess. You need a teacher."
Toph didn't care how he'd stumbled into Waterbending; she just didn't want him leaving before she could fulfill her word. She was Toph Beifong—she didn't break her promises, especially the "intimate" ones. To let him walk away now would make her a backstabber, and that was unacceptable!
"Oh, right! That's a great point!"
Aang clapped his hands together, his eyes lighting up as he looked at Li Ke. "If you're a multi-bender, you absolutely need training. The Avatar's duty is to help others master their elements!"
"Um, I know this is sudden, but could we talk?" Aang asked, his expression shifting to one of profound gravity. "Please... try your best never to reveal that you can use a second element. It's not that I want to be the 'only one'—it's that for your own safety, and the safety of everyone else, this knowledge is dangerous. But don't worry, I can teach you how to balance and control your powers."
Aang was being completely sincere.
The world feared the Avatar not just because of their raw power, but because they were eternal. Even if you managed to kill one, the next incarnation would eventually awaken the memories and wrath of their past lives. Taking on the Avatar meant inviting a multi-generational vendetta that you simply couldn't win.
Li Ke, however, had no such protection. As strong as he was, he wasn't a global deity. If word got out, even Aang might not be able to shield him from the world's collective greed and curiosity. For an "ordinary" person, secrecy was the only true armor. And who better to teach a multi-bender than the Avatar himself?
"Huh?" Li Ke gave a non-committal shrug, but seeing the stubborn determination in Toph's "gaze," he finally nodded. "Fine by me."
Hiding one element or the other was a small price to pay for peace. However, in the heat of the discussion, everyone had failed to notice the look on Azula's face—a sharp, calculating glint that had replaced her manic haze.
Li Ke settled in for the night at their lodgings. Team Avatar spent the evening locked in a heated debate over what to do with Azula, which effectively ruined Toph's plans to "sneak" into Li Ke's room.
But the night wasn't destined to be quiet.
"Be my man!"
Li Ke was jolted awake in the middle of the night by his Danger Sense. He sat up, only to find a woman straddling him, pinning him to the bed. It was Azula, her eyes burning with an intense, predatory focus.
Li Ke's mind was a blank slate of confusion. Is their jail made of cardboard? How the hell did she get out?!