King of the Wilderness

"It’s different from what you think. From the very beginning, my plan was to make this project self-sustaining and generate revenue."

Max couldn’t remember how many times he’d been shocked by him today, and could only wait for his next words.

Lin Yu’an continued to explain, "The live broadcast and visitation plan for the Polar Bear Sanctuary, which I mentioned to Scoot earlier, is not just to drive traffic and conversions to my social media."

"That’s just the first step, aimed at the initial brand value incubation for ’December,’ a world-class IP."

"When tens of millions of fans around the world fall in love with this unique little creature through my lens, we will formally launch the foundation."

"This foundation will have the two of us serving as co-chairmen of the board. It is a non-profit organization (NPO) that enjoys complete tax-exempt status by law."

"Its funding sources will be diversified."

"The 40 million US Dollars I promised will serve as its startup capital."

"Global fan donations. Do you remember the donation path I mentioned? That’s not child’s play. When an IP with tens of millions of fans starts accepting donations, and all funds are publicly transparent, the annual cash flow might exceed your imagination."

"There are also corporate and celebrity sponsorships. Scoot is right; environmental protection and animal conservation are the most politically correct labels now."

"I will leverage my connections at CAA to invite top luxury brands, tech companies, and Hollywood stars to become our foundation’s sponsorship partners. For them, this is not just charity, but a perfect brand marketing opportunity."

"The last point, and the most essential, is the authorization of derivative IP products."

Lin Yu’an’s eyes gleamed with shrewdness, "The name and image of ’December’ will become a registered trademark. We will license it to leading toy companies to produce its plush dolls."

"We will license it to Disney for an animated film about it. We will license it to game companies to develop mobile games with it as the main character... The revenue generated from these IP licenses will provide continuous growth."

"All these revenues will be injected into this non-profit foundation. And the foundation’s expenditures will be limited to three directions."

"To maintain ’December Arctic Home’ at the highest operational standards."

"To fund all of your Arctic biological research projects, Dr. MacKeez, and your future team."

"To support other excellent Arctic conservation projects worldwide."

Lin Yu’an put down his pen, turned around, and looked at Max, who was completely speechless by this grand business vision.

"So, Max, do you understand now?"

"My plan from the beginning was not to spend money supporting a princess, but to build a vast business ecosystem capable of self-replication and feeding back."

"And you are the co-founder and everlasting chief scientist of this enterprise."

These words completely shattered Max’s understanding of traditional investment in scientific research. He never thought it was possible to earn money from a research project while conducting research!

She looked at the man in front of her, who not only resolved her current dilemma but had also already mapped out an incredibly clear path for her and for ’December.’

She opened her mouth, only to find that any words at this moment seemed so pale and weak.

Eventually, she could only step forward and give Lin Yu’an a deep embrace filled with admiration and an inexplicable fondness, leaving him momentarily stunned.

"Lin... thank you."

In the days that followed, a legend quietly emerged at Merrill Field in Anchorage that left all the old pilots speechless.

Lin Yu’an did not return to Wiseman; he directly stayed at Max’s apartment, making it his temporary command base in the city’s southeastern foothills.

His life was divided into two distinct parts.

Every morning, before dawn, he would drive Max’s Subaru and appear on time at the FBO hall at Merrill Field.

He set for himself a nearly insane to-do list to qualify for long-distance flights.

In seven days, not only did he need to fully conquer the turbine beaver beast and obtain all necessary endorsements to legally control it,

but he also needed to overcome the mountain of instrument ratings and become a true all-weather pilot.

Only then would he qualify to embark on that epic journey to his kingdom at the fastest speed.

He booked an instrument flight instructor in Anchorage who had extensive flight hours on the turbine beaver.

Thus, a high-intensity conquest centered around this top-tier aircraft officially commenced.

Day One.

At dawn, when Hawk Jennings first saw Lin Yu’an and the colorful turbine beaver in the hangar at Merrill Field, his professionalism was filled with scrutiny.

Hawk’s voice carried no emotion, "Mr. Lin, I need to make something clear first. I’ve heard about your reputed talent."

"So, over the next three days, we will conduct the highest intensity training for type conversion and high-performance flying. Can your body and mind keep up?"

"Ready anytime, instructor," Lin Yu’an responded succinctly and calmly.

That day, they flew for a full eight hours.

Hawk demonstrated all the performance boundaries of the turbine beaver to Lin Yu’an in the most straightforward manner.

From climbing at maximum rate with high angle of attack, to simulating a single-engine failure for side slip approaches, from selecting emergency landing sites over glaciers, to extreme short-field landings using reverse propeller features.