The Dai Li was originally created by Avatar Kyoshi, some time between 270 and 82 BG, to preserve the cultural heritage of Ba Sing Se in response to a peasant uprising against the government of the 46th Earth King. The agents received a particularly hard and elitist training by the Avatar herself, making them an extremely effective secret police. Kyoshi later told Aang that she regretted having created the Dai Li, as she had no idea how corrupt they would eventually become.
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Princess Azula had infiltrated Ba Sing Se, however, and formed an alliance with the arrested Long Feng. She took command of the Dai Li on the Grand Secretariat's orders, but secretly began to shift the organization's loyalty to herself. Many Dai Li agents came to see the Fire Nation princess as the more effective leader, thus eroding their loyalty toward Long Feng. When the Coup of Ba Sing Se began, the secret police swiftly placed all members of the Council of Five, the foremost authority of the Earth Kingdom military, under house arrest, and assisted in the Earth King's arrest as well. After the Earth King's deposition, Long Feng tried to betray Azula, but he himself was in turn betrayed by the Dai Li. There upon the agents confirmed their loyalty to the Fire Nation. Later, when Aang and Katara battled with Zuko and Azula in the Crystal Catacombs, it was ultimately the Dai Li's intervention that vanquished their hopes of victory and granted Azula the time she needed to strike down Aang.[5]
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The Dai Li are highly skilled earthbending masters, whose talents even surpassed those of the Earthbender Guards of the Royal Palace.[3] Trained exclusively by Avatar Kyoshi herself, they were taught in the art of stealth and precision. They wear gloves and shoes, both made out of earthen materials, in order to earthbend on the go. Their shoes also give them the ability to slide along the ground, increasing their speed. They are formidable earthbenders, as shown by the two agents who guarded Azula during the invasion and the capture of the Council of Five, leading to their successful coup.
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