Mortal Kombat 1 (2023 Video Game)

Alan Lee: Shang Tsung

Photos 

Quotes 

• Shang Tsung : How do you know this? Who are you?

  Kronika : I am your deliverer, Shang Tsung. Join me... and I will put the realms at your feet.

• Shang Tsung : After escaping Lei Chin prison, I was hounded by the Imperial Police. I needed a place to hide and to recuperate, while I plotted the best way forward. I knew the remote canton of my youth would be perfect. To escape capture, I travelled by sea. Little did I know that a gargantuan storm was brewing. My tiny craft was smashed apart. I closed my eyes, waiting to drown, hoping that the Netherrealm wouldn't claim my soul. But when I reopened them, I found myself not in Hell, but on a deserted island. From its ruins I could tell that great sorcerers had once lived there. In the caves beneath the ruins, I found what I can only describe as a Well of Souls. Once I learn how to wield its power, I will become invincible.

• Geras : The squalor I endured as a child...

  Shang Tsung : Do not lie. I know the truth.

• Havik : I thought you were a fellow traveler.

  Shang Tsung : In that, as in other things, you are wrong.

• Havik : You don't approve of what I did at Seido's capital?

  Shang Tsung : I have no taste for senseless destruction.

• Havik : We all bleed the same color.

  Shang Tsung : And yet, I'm your superior.

• Havik : You would terminate our agreement?

  Shang Tsung : I plan also to terminate you.

• Shang Tsung : You were too greedy.

• Shang Tsung : It has ended.

• Shang Tsung : Another subject for my research.

• Shang Tsung : You should have bought my elixir.

• Baraka : Give me one good reason to spare your life.

  Shang Tsung : I won't insult you by pretending there are any.

• Shang Tsung : I can explain those horrors in my laboratory.

  Mileena : The only explanation is that you're a diabolical fiend.

• Shang Tsung : My experiments haven't stopped, you know.

  Reptile : They will today, Shang Tsung.

• Liu Kang : The realms nearly died, and still you won't repent.

  Shang Tsung : I would do the same again in a heartbeat.

• Reiko : You planned to betray us all long!

  Shang Tsung : There's no point in denying it now.

• Li Mei : Your misconduct is well documented, sorcerer.

  Shang Tsung : But to convict me, you'll have to catch me.

• Sindel : I trusted you with my daughter's life!

  Shang Tsung : You aren't the first to make that mistake.

• Scorpion : Do you realize your soul stealers destroyed lives?

  Shang Tsung : The better question is whether I care.

• Shang Tsung : We've done nothing to regret.

  Rain : What kind of heartless monster are you?

• Shang Tsung : You judge me, but you also have unclean hands.

  Sindel : I may occasionally be ruthless, but you will be forever depraved.

• Nitara : Joining forces with you was a waste of time.

  Shang Tsung : Vaeternus must see this through to the end.

• Baraka : This is the last time we cross paths, sorcerer.

  Shang Tsung : I shall inform your next of kin.

• Shang Tsung : Would it be so difficult to trust me again?

  General Shao : Try impossible, Shang Tsung.

• Shang Tsung : You have been cold to my entreaties.

  Sub-Zero : Because you proved you can't be trusted.

• Kenshi : Your mind is diseased, Shang Tsung.

  Shang Tsung : Like many great artists, I'm so misunderstood.

• Kenshi : You'd be right at home in the Yakuza.

  Shang Tsung : Who are they? And how might I find them?

• Shang Tsung : You plan a film about me?

  Johnny Cage : Yeah. The working title is "Death of a Salesman".

• General Shao : What happened to you after Lei Chin?

  Shang Tsung : I found my destiny.

• General Shao : Earthrealm must suffer an apocalypse! Now!

  Shang Tsung : Be patient, General.

• General Shao : You've been whispering in Reiko's ear.

  Shang Tsung : Fortunately for you, to little effect.

• General Shao : There are few who would dare double-cross me.

  Shang Tsung : It thrills me to be in such elite company.

• General Shao : You were scheming against me from the moment we met.

  Shang Tsung : We all have our agendas, don't we?

• Shang Tsung : Godhood is wasted on Liu Kang.

  General Shao : Which is why I'll take it from him.

• Shang Tsung : My skills have grown since we last met.

  General Shao : Show me, sorcerer.

• Shang Tsung : I thought we were allies, General.

  General Shao : Once Onaga's tamed, I won't need you.

• Shang Tsung : The magic I found on that island...

  General Shao : Will be shared, or you will die.

• Omni-Man : I'm not dumb enough to trust a charlatan.

  Shang Tsung : [snicker]  But it takes one to know one, doesn't it?

• Omni-Man : Schemers like you rot the core of civilization.

  Shang Tsung : I see there's no winning you over. Pity.

• Liu Kang : Your Titan self is not one to emulate.

  Shang Tsung : Why? Because he threatens your power?

• Liu Kang : You have fallen short of every hope I had for you.

  Shang Tsung : Music to my ears, Liu Kang.

• Liu Kang : Your thirst for power will never be quenched.

  Shang Tsung : You say that like it's a character flaw.

• Shang Tsung : First the Tengu, now the Shirai Ryu...

  Sub-Zero : Inferior clans who will fall to the Lin Kuei.

• Shang Tsung : Kuai Liang's betrayal cost us dearly.

  Sub-Zero : He will bleed for it, sorcerer.

• Shang Tsung : My friends, your patience is about to be rewarded. For I saved the best for last. I have recently discovered a cure-all of unrivaled potency. It will soon be on the shelves in every home of Outworld. This elixir is crafted from an ancient recipe. It has Patreon flowers. Margovian nectar. Powdered teeth of an Arctikan dragon. All this and more, infused with powerful Lekorian magic. There is a village, in the next canton ever, where everyone has purchased this miracle cure. Overnight, all diseases, even Tarkat, have disappeared. Now magic this potent is expensive. And I am sure you're asking yourselves: can I afford it? But the true question you must ask is: can I afford to be without it?

  Villager : You lie, Shang Tsung! Your cures are useless!

  Shang Tsung : I'm sorry. You are?

  Villager : Someone fool enough to have believed you. My daughter was dying when you came to my farm. You promised a miracle and I gave you all I had. But only days later... she was dead.

  Shang Tsung : [laughing]  That is impossible. My magic could not have failed her.

  Villager : THERE WAS NO MAGIC! I took your elixir to an imperial mage and you know what she said? It's nothing. Just borjang tea!

  Shang Tsung : [stammers]  The mage is mistaken, kind sir. My elixirs are of superior quality. Their efficacy is guaranteed.

• Kitana : Yours is a callous heart, sorcerer.

  Shang Tsung : If you truly knew it, you wouldn't think so.

• Kitana : Nothing you can say will save your life.

  Shang Tsung : Then let us dispense with the pleasantries, Princess.

• Kitana : You deceived my mother, you deceived us all!

  Shang Tsung : [*laughter*]  It is what I do, Kitana.

• Kitana : Titan Shang Tsung should have left you to rot.

  Shang Tsung : Shall I infer we're no longer friends, Princess?

• Shang Tsung : I had hoped our alliance would be more... deadly.

  Quan Chi : [*evil chuckle*]  All in good times, Shang Tsung.

• Shang Tsung : The General desired my presence?

  Reiko : Just your head. On a pike.

• Shang Tsung : Behind those eyes, you're still a scared little boy.

  Reiko : Cease your mind games, Shang Tsung.

• Shang Tsung : There's more I can teach you.

  Rain : I'm done with your tutelage, Shang Tsung.

• Shang Tsung : Once I regain control of the Dragon Army...

  Raiden : It's already been destroyed.

• Shang Tsung : I can offer you untold power.

  Raiden : That holds no appeal, sorcerer.

• Shang Tsung : Is it a crime to better my station?

  Raiden : When you inflict pain on others, yes.

• Shang Tsung : I can't have you sharing my secrets.

  Rain : None of them are safe with me.

• Shang Tsung : Think of the things we can still accomplish.

  Rain : I have, sorcerer. And I'm terrified.

• Shang Tsung : We're both small town boys at heart.

  Raiden : Then why is yours so infected with evil?

• Quan Chi : Damashi's true identity shocked me.

  Shang Tsung : It shocked us all, Quan Chi.

• Quan Chi : The Sisterhood of Shadow will protect us both.

  Shang Tsung : I prefer the company of my own minions.

• Quan Chi : It seems that the General has sworn us off.

  Shang Tsung : It is his loss, not ours.

• Quan Chi : Perhaps we set our sights too low.

  Shang Tsung : The thought of ruling Outworld now seems quaint, doesn't it?

• Quan Chi : Your thoughts on the ancient scrolls I found?

  Shang Tsung : The Kamidogu they speak of can't be real.

• Quan Chi : Perhaps we'd find a different timeline more hospitable.

  Shang Tsung : Without the Hourglass, we can't hope to find one.

• Sindel : How was I daft enough to believe your lies?

  Shang Tsung : Don't blame yourself. I can be very convincing.

• Raiden : Your laboratory was a chamber of horrors.

  Shang Tsung : I prefer to think of it as a chamber of secrets.

• Shang Tsung : You Earthrealmers foiled my plans.

  Johnny Cage : Just like a bunch of meddling kids.

• Ashrah : You can't possibly explain away your evil.

  Shang Tsung : How ignorant. You don't know me at all.

• Ashrah : Are you not aware that you repulse people?

  Shang Tsung : I am, Ashrah. I just don't care.

• Ashrah : You aren't born of the Netherrealm?

  Shang Tsung : Not to the best of my knowledge.

• Ashrah : My kriss will slit your throat.

  Shang Tsung : Poor Ashrah. You'll be sorely disappointed.

• [Custom AI Intros] 

  Shang Tsung : You are a pathetic excuse of a soldier, Reiko.

  Reiko : I'll cleave your head off, and present it to Shao myself!

• Shang Tsung : I have studied you. You have weaknesses.

  Omni-Man : You won't live long enough to exploit them.

• Shang Tsung : If anyone could take the Hourglass, you could.

  Geras : An idea that does not tempt me, sorcerer.

• Shang Tsung : Tell your Coven I need more assistance.

  Nitara : You've exhausted its patience, Shang Tsung.

• Shang Tsung : The things I've heard your sister say about you.

  Kitana : Lie about her again, and I'll feed you to a Taigore!

• Shang Tsung : We could form an alliance.

  Omni-Man : A one-man army needs no allies.

• Shang Tsung : You will tell me how to find Liu Kang.

  Kenshi : Actually, I'll take you to him -- in chains.

• Shang Tsung : A mere constable is no threat to a sorcerer.

  Li Mei : You forget I once led the Umgadi.

• Shang Tsung : Those Soul Stones you've discovered...

  Quan Chi : Are none of your business.

• Shang Tsung : I had higher hopes for our partnership.

  Nitara : Ha! To you, I'm an expendable asset.

• Shang Tsung : My hybrids are the next step in Outworld's evolution.

  Li Mei : They are crimes against nature.

• Shang Tsung : Your plan to punish me has failed.

  Liu Kang : I wished to reform you, not punish you.

• Shang Tsung : You shouldn't have let me return.

  Liu Kang : I will never regret showing mercy.

• Shang Tsung : Come visit my island. You'd enjoy it.

  Li Mei : What dark schemes are you plotting, sorcerer?

• Shang Tsung : What I wouldn't give for the gift of flight.

  Nitara : Your shapeshifting spells, perhaps?

• Shang Tsung : If I knew how blood makes your race immortal...

  Nitara : A secret I won't share with you.

• Shang Tsung : Liu Kang has no right to decide my fate.

  Geras : Perhaps not, but he has the power.

• Shang Tsung : In prior timelines, I held power?

  Geras : Not once did you put it to good use.

• Shang Tsung : I could teach you the secrets of shapeshifting.

  Scorpion : Stealth is the only tactic I need.

• Shang Tsung : It was all too simple, pulling your brother's strings.

  Scorpion : It sickens me that he was so easily exploited.

• Shang Tsung : I will gladly see you dead, Mr. Cage.

  Johnny Cage : Heh. So would half of Hollywood.

• Shang Tsung : I want your ability to self-heal.

  Havik : Don't ask me, ask Quan Chi.

• Shang Tsung : If you'd listened to me, you'd still have your sight.

  Kenshi : What I lost, Sento's given back to me ten times over.

• Shang Tsung : I killed Syzoth's family. I can kill yours.

  Baraka : Tarkat has already finished them, sorcerer.

• Shang Tsung : If I made your disease a weapon...

  Baraka : You'd condemn all of Outworld to misery!

• Shang Tsung : I do not appreciate my laboratory's destruction.

  Baraka : I, on the other hand, revel in it.

• Shang Tsung : I'm hosting a tournament. You should come.

  Ashrah : Not on your life.

• Shang Tsung : The hybrids I created from you...

  Baraka : Have been consigned to the Ten Hells!

• Shang Tsung : Shall I end your misery?

  Baraka : By dying? Be my guest.

• Shang Tsung : Why waste what little time you have left with me?

  Baraka : Because killing you will bring me joy in the afterlife.

• [Custom AI Intro Dialogues from Chai Tea] 

  Shang Tsung : Your girlfriend's soul belongs to me now.

  Sub-Zero : Don't you dare lay hands on "my" Sareena!

  [CLASH] 

  Sareena : That's really sweet of you, honey bun!

  Sub-Zero : Don't push your luck, woman!

  Sonya Blade : How cute, he said "my"!

  Shang Tsung : Hah, I got him to confess after all.

• Peacemaker : You can't take me, pipsqueak.

  Shang Tsung : Pipsqueak? Pip-squeak?

• Peacemaker : Full disclosure, I don't believe in magic.

  Shang Tsung : Magic doesn't care what you believe.

• [Custom AI Intros Dialogues from CrimsonKnight] 

  Shang Tsung : Scorpion is a problem Bi-Han, I may have to kill him my...

  Sub-Zero : If you touch my brother, I'll rip you limb from limb. Understand Sorcerer!

  Announcer : Wow. He does care for someone.

  Shang Tsung : What an unexpected response.

• [Custom AI Dialogues from CrimsonKnight] 

  Ashrah : Stay away from my man.

  Scorpion : Are you homosexual?

  Sindel : Don't even think about talking to my sexy Liu.

  Liu Kang : I'm not hers but do stay way from me.

  Shang Tsung : Why does everyone think I'm gay?

  Sub-Zero : Try looking in the fucking mirror!

• [Custom AI Dialogues from CrimsonKnight] 

  Shang Tsung : Your Cryomancing is fascinating, how does it work?

  Sub-Zero : None of your damn business, zestfest.