Ultimate Firepower
Chapter 176 - 165: Still One for One

Chapter 176: Chapter 165: Still One for One

Shaman, a prince who had lived a life of privilege, why was he not afraid of death?

An operation could go without a plan, but never without brains. You could rush in and do it, but you couldn’t finish without understanding what had happened.

So, why was Shaman not afraid of death?

When Gao Yi followed Abdulla, walking out of the intelligence bureau building under the hostile or fearful gaze of hundreds, he suddenly understood.

Death was terrifying, but some things were even more frightening than death.

Shaman was a prince, but he was supposed to become a king. If he were taken hostage and removed, regardless of whether Gao Yi would return him as promised, Shaman could no longer become king.

Therefore, Shaman had to be tough. If he wasn’t tough, being taken hostage and leaving the building would mean the loss of his power.

For some people, power was much more important than life.

Once he understood this, Gao Yi’s heart sank.

Feng Biao was in danger because Shaman would most likely not compromise, even at the risk of his own life, and Feng Biao couldn’t really kill Shaman.

Because if Shaman died, everyone would die; none of Gao Yi’s group could escape. Everyone would die!

Could Feng Biao handle it alone? Could he withstand the pressure from Shaman?

Gao Yi was not so sure anymore.

The car reached the hotel where Harold was detained. Gao Yi and Mu Tianwen didn’t get out. They watched Abdulla get off the car, furious, and storm into the hotel. Then, just a few minutes later, a confused Harold was brought out.

"Go to greet your father."

At this point, there was no point in hiding. They had to warmly welcome the brother they had finally got back.

Mu Tianwen got out of the car, and so did the chauffeur.

Once the two had alighted, Gao Yi made a call, his voice low: "Everyone, just follow behind, don’t show up. Go directly to the airport, but don’t appear without my word."

Abdulla came to the hotel to release someone, and Gao Yi followed, so there was no need for Lin Xianghua and Li Jie, who were arranged to be there beforehand, to show themselves. Also, there was no need for Lucy, who was monitoring in secret, to appear anymore.

Having notified the others, Gao Yi also got out of the car.

Harold had been locked up for several days, and he might already know his fate. So when he was suddenly taken out, he resisted fiercely, struggling and twisting, especially after being brought outside the hotel, where he thought his end had come.

But seeing his son and Gao Yi suddenly appear, Harold was immediately stunned.

It was the kind of switch from extreme fear to extreme bewilderment, not knowing what to do in the moment.

Mu Tianwen stepped forward and embraced his father, excitedly saying, "Father!"

Harold opened his mouth, bewildered, and looked at Gao Yi. Then he turned to look at the two who had let go of his arms and then at Abdulla, finally asking, "What’s going on?"

Abdulla’s face was ashen with anger, and he said harshly, "Move!"

Harold was still bewildered, saying, "Where to? Why have they come?"

Mu Tianwen pulled Harold and said urgently, "You’re saved; let’s go, we need to leave!"

Harold finally switched from bewilderment to joy, his mouth agape he instinctively said, "Huh? Saved?"

Gao Yi had no choice but to step forward and grab Harold’s arm as he walked him to the car, whispering, "No time to explain, let’s move!"

After staggering a few steps following Gao Yi, Harold’s ecstasy took over and he asked urgently, "I’m saved? I’m really okay? Haha! What did you guys do... uh, you didn’t surrender, did you?"

Harold suddenly thought of something and frowned at Mu Tianwen, asking, "How did you pull it off?"

The chauffeur opened the car door, Gao Yi pushed Harold in and then whispered, "We had Shaman hostage and got you out in exchange."

Harold was immediately dumbfounded, frozen in place.

Gao Yi closed the car door and hurried to the other side, saying urgently, "To the airport."

Once in the car, Harold gripped the seat, looking incredulously at Gao Yi, "What did you just say? You took Shaman hostage?"

"Yes, we took Shaman hostage, pointed a gun at his head, and forced him to release you."

Gao Yi offered a quick explanation and then swiftly picked up the phone to call Feng Biao.

"We’ve got the big brother, heading to the airport now. How are you doing over there?"

"I’m good here, no problem."

Hearing Feng Biao’s response, Gao Yi breathed a little easier, then he told the chauffeur, "Drive, let’s go."

Harold had too many questions. Waiting for Gao Yi to hang up, he immediately asked, "How did you do it? Why are we heading to the airport? Since you took Shaman hostage, couldn’t you force him to compromise?"

Harold couldn’t understand the situation.

Gao Yi looked back helplessly, very seriously telling Harold, "The limit of what we could do was to keep you alive; stop thinking about fighting Shaman. You’re no match for him - you and all those behind you combined are no match."

Mu Tianwen in the back seat, also somewhat helplessly, said, "Father, get the situation straight. If you don’t surrender, Shaman will have you killed; if you surrender, your allies will want you dead. From the day you became their spokesperson, there was no way you could’ve survived. I really don’t understand what you were thinking; you never had a chance at the throne, why get involved in this struggle at all."

Harold said quietly, "Because they broke the rules..."

As the conversation grew more sensitive, Gao Yi raised his voice, "Let’s not talk about that anymore. Those who understand, understand; there’s no need to explain to those who don’t."

Harold and Mu Tianwen fell silent. After a moment, Harold suddenly said, "I really never expected you to be the one to rescue me!"

The chauffeur had been silent all this time, but now, he finally spoke softly, "And he came to rescue you on his own initiative. He was the driving force behind the entire operation, orchestrating it all himself."

The chauffeur said a word in fairness, and Mu Tianwen added softly, "Yes, without... him, we couldn’t have saved you."

After saying this, Mu Tianwen suddenly said, "And I don’t even know your name, sir."

The deed done, he would vanish into the shadows, his identity concealed.

The problem was that no one even knew Gao Yi’s real name yet, let alone had an appropriate designation.

Not "Busan," not "Gardener," there was no suitable code name.

In the United States, even "Gao Busi" was considered his real name, and even the name "Gao Yi" couldn’t be used.

What should he be called, "Sky Garden"? Or "Restaurant Hammer King"?

Forget it, consider these things after ensuring safety.

"Let’s talk about it after we’re safe, it’s pointless discussing it now."

Harold took a deep breath as he leaned forward from the back seat, drawing close to Gao Yi, and said with deep gratitude, "Thank you, my brother. I really didn’t expect that it would be you who saved me in the end."

Gao Yi waved his hand dismissively, not in the mood to accept Harold’s gratitude right now.

Feng Biao was still at the intelligence bureau, and Gao Yi judged that it would be difficult for Feng Biao to extricate himself.

Whether they were billionaires, warlords, or drug lords, what mattered most to these people was their own lives.

But Shaman was different; to him, power was more important than life. Without the power he wielded, his fate would be far worse than death.

Ultimately, it was a lack of experience that led to the mistake of thinking everyone feared death, without considering that those in power were entirely different creatures.

If they weren’t careful, they could end up sacrificing Feng Biao. The mere thought of this pained Gao Yi.

Additionally, there was the fear that Feng Biao wouldn’t be able to withstand the pressure. If Feng Biao surrendered midway, then everyone would be finished.

So it was far from safe at the moment.

The car drove fast, reaching the airport in no time, with the butler driving straight into the airport and to the private plane parking area.

Harold’s private jet had already rolled out of the hangar but was parked just outside the hangar entrance, unable to move onto the airport’s runway.

The group disembarked, abandoning the car. Harold and his butler hurried onto the plane, Mu Tianwen pausing on the ladder, turning back to look at Gao Yi.

Gao Yi gestured for them to go ahead, then turned to Abdulla, whose face was clouded with anger, and said, "Let the plane onto the runway."

Abdulla remained silent and stationary, flanked by a dozen men. While they had not drawn their guns, they were ready to pull them at any moment and could shoot both Gao Yi and Harold’s family dead.

Abdulla wasn’t giving clearance.

Gao Yi called Feng Biao again, saying, "We’re at the airport, but the airport isn’t granting clearance. We can’t take off. Have His Highness issue the order to let the plane go."

As soon as Gao Yi finished speaking, Feng Biao hung up the call from the other end.

No knowing how Feng Biao would handle it, Gao Yi was worried and anxious, but he had to wait patiently.

Gao Yi stood alone against Abdulla’s dozen men, and it was evident that more security was continuously arriving at the airport. In about ten minutes, there would be almost a hundred people surrounding Gao Yi, most armed and aiming their guns directly at him.

A single person in a standoff against hundreds requires a certain mental fortitude.

As time passed, Gao Yi’s heart sank lower and lower. They should have been cleared to fly as soon as they reached the airport, but the fact that they still couldn’t take off indicated there were problems on Feng Biao’s end.

At last, Abdulla couldn’t help but laugh, licking his lips and whispering, "You made me look foolish, but don’t think you’ll live. You’re all going to die!"

As if to underscore Abdulla’s words, the phone suddenly rang. Abdulla took the call, and his recently smug expression instantly collapsed.

"Let them go, let them take off!"

Abdulla, pale with fury, waved his arms and roared, "Don’t intercept, disperse!"

Feng Biao had managed it; he had succeeded.

Gao Yi sighed with relief, then immediately took out his phone and made a quick call.

The call connected, and Feng Biao whispered, "Boss, did they grant clearance?"

"They did, how are you?"

"I’m fine, you guys go. It’s best to land within two hours, don’t fly too far, and then figure out a way to come get me."

"Uh? Your voice sounds off. Are you getting weak?"

Feng Biao let out a forced laugh, "It’s scary man, you’d be weak too."

"No, are you hurt?"

Gao Yi, a martial artist, though not sensitive to other things, was very attuned to a person’s breath and the feel of their speech. Now, Feng Biao sounded out of breath.

Feng Biao was silent for a moment, then said, "Boss, get out of here, cut the chatter, don’t get sentimental, and remember, my real name is Feng Tianqi. Stop calling me ’Wind Vane,’ I don’t like it."

Feng Biao hung up.

Gao Yi was silent, holding the phone, motionless.

He didn’t know what Feng Biao had done, but Abdulla likely knew, as he was beside himself, shouting into the phone, "Get on the plane, get going! Hurry up!"

Gao Yi took a deep breath.

Old Feng needed to be rescued, but how?

Perhaps a trade, one for one?

Suddenly, Gao Yi grabbed Abdulla’s waving arm, pulling him close, and a swift karate chop landed on Abdulla’s neck.

Then, grabbing the slumped Abdulla with one hand and snatching the phone from the other, he hoisted Abdulla onto his shoulder, pointed at the alarmed soldiers around him, and bellowed, "Don’t move, didn’t you hear no intercepting?"

After shouting, he didn’t wait to see if the people nearby would shoot; Gao Yi shouldered Abdulla as he started to board the plane, glancing at the phone still on a call. He said into the phone, "I have Abdulla. I won’t kill him, but I’ll take him to a safe place abroad. If you want to exchange for Abdulla, bring my people over, understood?"

The person on the phone wasn’t Shaman, but they replied in English, bewildered, "What? What do you mean?"

"Tell his Highness I won’t kill Abdulla, but I could get a lot of useful information out of him. So, to get Abdulla back, deliver my people safely, got that?"

Gao Yi entered the aircraft, tossing Abdulla onto the floor and commanded, "Take off!"