[Chapter 541: Exit Turmoil]
Three days later, Hillary left satisfied and hopeful. But fulfilling her dream of having a child still faced a major obstacle: how to get Bill's approval. That, however, wasn't something Linton had to worry about at the moment. He was busy preparing for his upcoming foreign trip.
In recent months, Linton had just announced his groundbreaking inventions of the Vitality Pill and Beauty Pill, which stirred enormous interests worldwide. On top of that, a recent bloody crackdown on organized crime only intensified the spotlight on him.
Every word and move he made was under close surveillance by Washington's top officials. Not long ago, Leon Panetta -- who had received Vitality Pills on the farm -- cautioned Linton to avoid international travel for the time being. Now that word was out he planned to go outside the country, nerves were on edge.
Leon Panetta immediately called to dissuade him. "My dear friend, I heard you're planning a foreign trip soon?"
"Yes, departure is set for July 20th. The whole trip will be two weeks. It won't delay our deliveries next month."
"Can you cancel the trip?"
"Why would I cancel?"
"Here's the thing: You're the most valuable person on Earth now. There are countless powerful forces abroad eyeing you. In America, no one dares touch you. But once you leave, your safety can't be guaranteed."
"I know that. You saw I didn't even participate in the overseas promotions for Mission: Impossible."
"So you have decided not to travel abroad?"
"No. Leon you should know I have my own security team. I will be safe."
"Safe? Maybe from ordinary people. But don't forget, you're tied to the Vitality and Beauty Pills -- huge stakes that don't really work in your favor. I'm more worried about the military forces. If they move against you covertly, that's when you'll be in real danger."
"Leon, which military will such force against me? My security is one of the best in the world."
"I can't convince you now. I'll have our agencies run a full security assessment, and I have to report this to the President."
...
Right after hanging up with Leon Panetta, several Washington heavyweights -- Vice President Al Gore, Secretary of state Warren Christopher, Speaker Newt Gingrich, and Defense Secretary William Perry -- all called him urging him to cancel his upcoming trip.
Hillary, freshly back in Washington, was even more anxious. Forgetting Linton's earlier instruction never to address him as "Master" on the phone, her voice trembled slightly. "Master, you absolutely cannot leave the country now. It's way too dangerous."
"Ms. Hillary, please calm down. Let's talk this through."
"Linton, I heard you're going in a few days."
"Yes, that's the plan. The paperwork is underway."
"Can you cancel it? Traveling now is just too risky."
"Trust me, I'm not gambling with my security."
"Are you sure?"
"Absolutely."
"If you're really going, can I accompany you?"
"That's ridiculous, don't even think about it."
"You've misunderstood. I meant, with me escorting you, my status would boost your security level from both sides."
"No, please don't do that. It would cause too much trouble. I appreciate your good intentions, but don't worry. Goodbye."
...
Finally, Bill Clinton also called. After failing to dissuade him, he insisted on conducting a comprehensive security evaluation before giving any official approval.
Washington's vehement opposition to his trip deeply frustrated Linton. But there was nothing he could do -- once they were involved, the exit permits wouldn't come through without their nod.
Yet, Linton had no choice but to make this trip.
Just earlier in the month, Aunt Kelly reported from Columbia. Last year's $15 million charity projects there had been completed -- five highways and 20 schools built and put into use. According to his estimates, the beneficiaries' gratitude should be at its peak just now, which meant this was the best time to harvest the much-needed "merit energy."
This wasn't just about charity -- it was crucial for his cultivation journey.
After so long, he had grown deeper understanding and respect for the cultivation system. But unlike traditional methods of absorbing spiritual energy, his path relied on the emotional power generated by the masses.
Though faster, his method had a shaky foundation. He had no sparring partners and no real combat opportunities. In essence, he had advancement but lacked fighting capability.
That wasn't obvious in daily life. In the real world, he was basically a god compared to ordinary people. When encountering troublesome gangsters, one swing of his sword turned them into a bloodbath effortlessly.
But there was a massive hidden danger: his ability to withstand heavenly tribulations was abysmal. With his current strength, safely passing the tribulations was pure fantasy.
He had survived the last lightning tribulation only by leveraging a specially built lightning protection array. The next stage, the Astral Dominion stage, meant tribulations far more treacherous -- especially heart tribulations, on top of lightning.
The lightning tribulation would be a hundred times stronger than before, and the previous protective array would be obsolete. He'd have to upgrade it with top-notch metal materials and expand its coverage to have any chance. His financial backing meant that was possible.
Plus, he now had his true spirit flying sword, along with his full power at the completion of the Astral Dominion stage.
Though dangerous, surviving the lightning tribulation was still within the realm of possibility.
But the heart tribulation? He had zero confidence in surviving that.
Those before him who had passed that trial either possessed corresponding spirit-protective treasures, cultivated specialized spiritual techniques, or had purified their mind and heart by avoiding worldly entanglements, making their soul crystal clear and unassailable.
He had none of those. Worse, his cultivation method required navigating worldly tribulations by refining emotions generated between himself and others, precisely the opposite of purifying the mind.
This method inevitably attracted karmic entanglements and became a breeding ground for heart demons.
The success rate of masters with this technique passing the Astral Dominion tribulation was extremely low.
Without extraordinary circumstances, reaching Astral Dominion was a dead end; for him, the Celestial Presence stage remained the pinnacle.
A carefree life of 800 years sounded far better than risking certain death for the Astral Dominion breakthrough.
Yet, perhaps good karma returned in unexpected ways. An unconscious act of kindness toward ancestors granted him rare merit energy, something other cultivators could only dream of.
Besides refining magic and spiritual perception, merit energy's greatest benefit was to help withstand and weaken tribulations.
With enough merit energy, Linton believed even with his other shortcomings, passing the Astral Dominion tribulation no longer seemed impossible.
This became his strongest motivation to cultivate further. After all, achieving Astral Dominion would grant him another 800 years of life -- who wouldn't want that?
Merit energy became his most precious resource, bar none.
The only way to gain merit energy was through charity work, which forced him to personally appear near the beneficiaries -- within roughly 20 miles. The closer he got, the faster he could obtain it.
Yet, frustratingly, in America, merit energy from charity was practically nil.
It wasn't that he was oblivious; he paid close attention and felt nothing.
Spending equally large sums in Los Angeles, the merit energy was less than one ten-thousandth of what he gained in Columbia.
Before leaving for Columbia last July, he had spent heavily on local charity but felt no merit energy at all.
Starting this year, to maximize merit energy gains, he relocated his charity office to downtown Los Angeles, concentrating fundraising efforts there.
The city's transportation infrastructure was mature -- building roads was pointless.
After careful thought, he focused on two projects.
One was setting up rescue stations downtown to supply basic living necessities -- mainly food and drink -- to the homeless.
The second was partnering with an education group to build a nonprofit private school.
Under his direction, Aunt Kelly's charity office had already opened six rescue stations, each serving 500 homeless individuals daily, supplying $20 worth of aid per person.
That meant the daily charity expenditure reached $60,000.
But the infuriating thing was, despite this massive outlay, merit energy gains remained trivial -- practically nonexistent.
Initially, Linton suspected the charity workers were dishonest or mismanaging supplies, but on multiple site visits with Danny driving him, he saw the homeless patiently lining up for food.
Still, no merit energy came.
Through spiritual perception and repeated observations, he uncovered the root problem.
The homeless had lost any sense of ambition, becoming numb and indifferent. Due to the safety net America's welfare provided, they weren't starving and had even made homelessness a strange profession.
More importantly, in their eyes, whether aid came from the government or wealthy capitalists, it was their due compensation.
Apart from newly homeless individuals who might feel some gratitude initially, the rest harbored no thankfulness whatsoever.
After spending so much on charity, with beneficiaries feeling no gratitude, how could Linton absorb any merit energy?
His first project was effectively pointless.
Later, reluctantly, he instructed Aunt Kelly and others to turn the rescue stations into tax shelters and profit centers just like the others.
The second project involved a $30 million investment with the Cook Education Group to build a high-standard private school.
Six months later, it was still stuck in bureaucratic delays; construction might not even start this year.
Linton also doubted that, even when completed, the school could generate sufficient gratitude. Being nonprofit, investors wouldn't expect returns, but maintaining a top-tier private school was expensive, so fees couldn't be low.
Under those conditions, he wasn't confident that students or parents would feel enough gratitude to provide merit energy.
Compared to Colmbia, the merit energy from American charity was off by at least ten thousand times.
He also had some charity funds allocated to Africa, but based on his understanding, people's qualities there weren't much better than in America.
Busy with other matters and given his sensitive position, a trip to Africa could cause trouble. Plus, the charity budget there was small, so he had no plans to visit anytime soon.
Still, he intended to find the opportunity eventually to assess on-site the cost-effectiveness of charity and merit energy there.
Because this touched on his Astral Dominion cultivation path, this trip was absolutely essential. No one could stop him.
Two days later, it was already July 17th. Seeing no progress from Washington, he became irritated and called Bill Clinton, sharply criticizing him and issuing a firm order.
"I'll give you one more day. Tomorrow night, I want to see my exit permit. Don't delay my plans."
*****
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