Ultimate Firepower
Chapter 502 - 481 Baby Face

Chapter 502: Chapter 481 Baby Face

As a foreigner, the opportunity to enter the forest openly is rare.

In truth, Gao Yi did not want to enter the forest. If he could, he would have preferred to handle matters outside rather than accompanying the desperate Alexander into the KGB’s headquarters for such a risky adventure.

Alexander had reached the point of no return, but Gao Yi had not. All Gao Yi wanted was to add a manageable and reliable subordinate to his arsenal—there was no need for him to risk his life alongside Alexander.

Ultimately, Gao Yi still wanted to see for himself what kind of person Yuri really was.

But Yuri turned out to be quite different from Gao Yi’s imaginations.

Sitting in a chair made it difficult to gauge his height accurately, but Yuri was noticeably short—an estimated 1.65 meters or so.

His hair was very short, thin and soft, adhering closely to his scalp, and it was a gingery yellow.

His face had fine wrinkles, but he still looked generally young—around thirty or so. If one didn’t know his actual age was fifty, his appearance could easily mislead.

The corners of his mouth naturally curled upward, giving him a persistent appearance of a subtle smile, even when expressionless.

An old man with a baby face—meeting him in person felt less remarkable than hearing of his legendary reputation. Just from his appearance, it seemed impossible to connect the man before him to the tales of someone who almost single-handedly changed the course of the world.

Gao Yi had anticipated this as a historical encounter—a meeting with a living legend, a defining moment to kick off a new legendary Chapter.

Yet now, Gao Yi truly couldn’t reconcile the person before him with the image he had in his mind.

He knew better than to judge someone by their looks, but Gao Yi still couldn’t help himself.

Gao Yi couldn’t resist glancing at Alexander, and he noticed that the usually cold and composed Alexander seemed nervous.

Alexander—nervous? And it was the kind of nervousness he couldn’t hide. Oddly enough, this gave Gao Yi a slight boost of confidence.

"Yuri Komonov, pleased to meet you."

Yuri was quite courteous; he stood up and extended his hand toward Gao Yi.

Gao Yi took a step forward and shook Yuri’s hand.

Now it was certain—Yuri’s height was likely between 1.63 and 1.65 meters, with a margin of error no greater than two centimeters.

A diminutive man with a baby face, now wearing a serious expression, yet still looking as if he were smiling.

"Hello, I’m Gao Yi."

Gao Yi decided to use his real name. This wasn’t his original plan—he had intended to introduce himself as "Gardener." But upon meeting Yuri, he couldn’t resist giving his real name as a mark of respect.

Despite his appearance not aligning with Gao Yi’s heroic ideal, reputation precedes reality. Huang Haisheng’s vivid portrayal of Yuri had been so potent that Gao Yi could not afford to overlook or underestimate the baby-faced man before him.

Yuri nodded, sat back down, and turned his attention to Alexander.

Alexander was quite the character—cold in appearance and remarkably efficient in action, undoubtedly a ruthless individual.

Yet Alexander looked nothing like a ruthless figure at the moment. He stood respectfully and said, "I have nothing further to say. I simply used my remaining authority during my final moments to invite you here for a meeting with him."

Alexander—being honest?

Gao Yi glanced at Alexander, surprised. Alexander maintained his upright posture, arms pressed neatly to his sides, standing formally before Yuri.

Yuri shifted his gaze to Gao Yi and asked, "Why did you want to meet me?"

How should one answer that? Gao Yi genuinely didn’t know.

Suddenly inspired, Gao Yi replied calmly, "To witness a living legend, to convey someone’s thanks to you, and to see if I could rescue you—that’s about it."

Brutally honest.

"You’re Lord Dong’s man."

"Actually, no. I’m a Lord Dong native but not one of his people. Right now, I can’t be defined by nationality or allegiance. You can consider me a free man or a rootless wanderer without any sense of belonging."

Still brutally honest.

It felt as though Yuri possessed some kind of magic, compelling Gao Yi to speak nothing but the truth.

Yuri nodded and then fell silent.

The office was quiet, and the atmosphere was somewhat oppressive.

Alexander glanced at Gao Yi as though reproaching him for not speaking more.

Gao Yi exhaled, then suddenly asked Yuri, "Can you leave? Or do you not want to leave?"

After silence, a direct, unavoidable question.

Alexander frowned involuntarily, but Yuri replied calmly, "There’s nowhere to go."

This answer was clear—it wasn’t about being unable or unwilling to leave but rather about having nowhere to go, which kept him here.

Gao Yi felt this was the answer that aligned most with his perception of Yuri.

Alexander hesitated but said nothing.

Gao Yi pressed on, "Then leave with me. I currently have top agents from the U.S., U.K., and France. If you’re willing to join, we can form the permanent five and dominate the Inner World."

Yuri shook his head, replying, "No interest. Pointless proposition."

Alexander shot a reproachful look at Gao Yi, seemingly blaming him for being so direct and using such crude persuasion to invite Yuri.

Alexander genuinely hadn’t anticipated Gao Yi saying such things.

Gao Yi reconsidered and asked, "Then what do you want to do?"

"I don’t want to do anything."

Yuri was direct as always, answering every question before turning to Gao Yi and adding, "The world has become something I despise. I can’t change it, nor do I want to. After completing everything I needed to do, now I want nothing."

Saying this, Yuri stood up and turned to Alexander, saying, "Take me back."

Alexander unhesitatingly gestured for him to proceed.

Gao Yi remained still, suddenly remarking, "I have a friend named Lin Xianghua."

Alexander looked at Gao Yi quizzically, while Yuri walked away without sparing Gao Yi a glance, gesturing for Alexander to lead.

Gao Yi continued, "He’s a Liuqiu native who seeks Liuqiu’s independence."

Alexander had already turned to escort Yuri out, but Yuri stopped abruptly and looked back at Gao Yi.

Gao Yi spoke earnestly, "I fully support Lin Xianghua."

For the first time, Yuri smiled genuinely.

This time, it was a true smile.

A baby face with natural smile effects, now amplifying the emotion.

"The fight against imperialist oppression for freedom."

Yuri looked at Gao Yi, still smiling, and said cynically, "In this age, are there still people pursuing such noble causes?"

Gao Yi replied sincerely, "To me, there’s no need for reasons or lofty goals—I will support Lin Xianghua’s cause regardless."

"I understand."

Yuri nodded and said calmly, "Though our motives differ, your support for democratic freedom makes us comrades."

Yuri stepped closer to Gao Yi and extended his hand once more.

Gao Yi reached out and shook Yuri’s hand once more.

After letting go, Yuri gestured to Gao Yi and said to Alexander, "Bring this comrade a chair."

Yuri sat across from Alexander’s desk, where there was only one chair.

Seeing there wasn’t a third chair in the office, Alexander promptly moved the chair from behind his desk and placed it opposite Yuri.

Yuri gestured for Gao Yi to take the seat, then returned to the chair he had initially occupied. Gao Yi took the seat opposite Yuri without hesitation.

"The revolutionary cause has stagnated. Today, you’ve shown me there are still people upholding the fight for freedom. That gives me hope. Now, let’s begin by addressing what needs to be resolved first."

Gao Yi thought about how to introduce Lin Xianghua since, in his understanding, resolving the matter seemed to refer to this.

However, Yuri turned to Alexander, fixing him with a calm gaze, asking, "What kind of arrangement have you made?"

"What?"

Gao Yi was puzzled and looked at Alexander quizzically.

But Alexander, familiar with Yuri’s style, responded respectfully, "I’m currently working under Nikolai. It was under Nikolai’s order that I invited you here. Now Nikolai is about to step down, and I will be reassigned. So, I wanted to seize this final opportunity to see if there’s any way to alter the situation."

So, that was what Yuri was referring to.

For his part, Alexander was being quite candid with Yuri.

Yuri responded instantly, "Not likely."

Alexander continued, "He gave me the idea—perhaps I could invest my future in a promising candidate for the position of director."

Yuri shook his head, saying, "You’re mistaken. Traitors are never trusted. Whoever you choose to side with, it won’t matter. Once the situation stabilizes and power consolidates, you’ll be the first to be purged."

Alexander respectfully replied, "I’ve considered that, but what should I do specifically? Please advise me."

"Rather than aligning yourself with a new director candidate, support one yourself. Don’t strive for absolute control, but ensure they never dare to touch you."

Having said that, Yuri glanced at Gao Yi and smiled again, this time more warmly, asking, "Wouldn’t you agree?"

"Indeed, I do."

Gao Yi couldn’t help but agree, as he had always thought along similar lines.

Still, Gao Yi felt the plan was impractical—albeit sound as strategy, the inability to execute it rendered everything flawed in his mind.

So Gao Yi immediately added, "But implementation will be quite difficult, wouldn’t you say?"

Alexander seemed to share the sentiment.

Yet Yuri seemed unconcerned, replying softly, "Perhaps not."

Gao Yi and Alexander immediately looked at Yuri with eyes full of admiration.

Yuri smiled and said, "Eliminate everyone taller than you—then you’ll be the tallest."

A single word formed in Gao Yi’s mind. As it sank in, he began to have slight regrets.