The Maze of Mad Emperor Ku

The Maze of Mad Emperor Ku was one of the pandaren legends told by Lorewalker Shuchun to Ziya and Druz.

According to legend, Emperor Ku was ruled by his fears. He believed that the mogu would return. Through the haze of his paranoia, he saw treachery behind every smile, a scheme behind every vow of devotion, and cunning traps in the calm prophecies of the jinyu waterspeakers. Later, he had a maze built beneath his palace, with a safe room at the center. The next time his fear gripped him, Ku fled for it, shut the door, and waited for the terror to subside. It never did. The maze had been so cleverly constructed that the emperor had forgotten the way out.

Search parties sometimes heard him calling, but years passed. Occasionally, an explorer went into the maze and ran out screaming, wild with terror, for Ku's time in the dark had twisted him into something appalling to behold. Soon, a cub named Li Tao chased his bandicoon kit into the maze. He soon realized he was being followed. Even though he was too frightened to look, little Li Tao still understood that here was someone even more frightened than he was. So he reached back and led the poor emperor out of the maze.