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Zhang thought for a moment.
"We'll talk about Trinity Church once things stabilize here. The Mount Rushmore gold is going to keep us busy for a while. That vault is far more complicated—we'll need a much tighter plan."
Raphael nodded.
"Just let me know when you need me."
Zhang looked at him.
"You're sure you're still willing to help?"
"Positive."
Raphael smiled. "Like I said, I won't be in this world much longer. Might as well do something useful before I leave."
Zhang didn't push any further.
In the following days Raphael returned to Washington with Zhang and stayed inside the embassy. He never stepped outside again.
The Mount Rushmore excavation had wrapped cleanly, but the real work was only beginning.
The professional team spent a full week running assessments and finally concluded that moving the entire hoard would take at least six months.
Listening to the experts debate logistics, Raphael had only one thought:
Professional work really does belong to professionals.
Eventually the discussion made him drowsy. His consciousness blurred, and he drifted off.
---
When he opened his eyes again, he was back in reality.
Raphael shook off the haze and immediately summoned the system panel.
The semi-transparent screen unfolded—
[Detected that the host has returned from the National Treasure world]
[Updating purchasable items…]
[National Treasure World – Available Items]
Raphael scanned quickly. Most of the options were useless—Benjamin Gates' historical knowledge, Abigail's European history expertise, Ian's mercenary contracts, various antiques, even the computer they used to track clues.
None of it interested him.
Until his eyes landed on the very bottom—
[Gold (Mount Rushmore Treasure)]
[Description: Ancient gold hidden deep inside Mount Rushmore by Charles Carroll, originally from the Maya Empire and recast using modern refining techniques. Purity: 999 Pure Gold]
[Purchase Options]
[Option 1: Standard Gold Bars]
Specification: 50 kg per bar (approx. 110 lbs)
Quantity: 60,000 bars
Total Weight: 3,000 tons
Purity: 999 Pure Gold
[Option 2: Large Gold Bars]
Specification: 1,000 kg per bar (approx. 2,200 lbs, size of a household microwave)
Quantity: 5,000 bars
Total Weight: 5,000 tons
Purity: 999 Pure Gold
[Total Weight: 8,000 tons]
[Pricing Mechanism: $5,625 per jin ($11,250 per kg)]
[Total Price Calculation]
8,000 tons = 8,000,000 kg
8,000,000 kg × $11,250/kg = $90,000,000,000
[Total: $90 Billion]
Raphael stared at the number and froze.
Ninety billion.
Dollars.
His breathing actually stopped for a second.
But a question quickly surfaced.
He had roughly estimated the Mount Rushmore gold at least thirteen thousand tons.
The system was only offering eight thousand tons—nearly half was missing.
He thought for a moment and understood.
Purity.
The original gold was ancient Maya treasure. Refining technology thousands of years ago couldn't have been advanced. There must have been heavy impurities.
The eight thousand tons the system offered was the net weight after modern purification.
That explained the shrinkage.
But what really made his heart race wasn't the quantity—it was the price.
$5,625 per jin.
Converted: $11,250 per kg, or $11.25 million per ton.
Eight thousand tons for ninety billion dollars.
It sounded astronomical.
The key point was—
This was the system's fixed price.
No matter when he bought, it would always be this price.
Meanwhile, real-world gold prices…
Raphael's memories flooded back.
In 2003, international gold was trading at around $350–400 per ounce.
One ounce ≈ 28.35 grams, so roughly $12,000–14,000 per kg.
Almost the same as the system's price—actually a little cheaper.
But here was the real kicker:
Raphael knew the next twenty years of gold price trends very clearly.
2008 financial crisis: massive surge.
2011 peak: $1,900 per ounce.
Even after fluctuations it would stay between $1,200–1,500.
Then the 2020 pandemic would drive another massive surge.
By 2025, right before his rebirth, gold had already broken $2,500 per ounce.
Over twenty years, more than six times higher.
If he left this gold untouched and cashed it out in twenty years—
Eight thousand tons at $2,500/oz would be about $88,000 per kg.
Eight million kilograms × $88,000 = $704 billion.
Seven hundred and four billion dollars!
Raphael leaned against the headboard and took a deep breath.
The number was insane.
Germany, the world's third-largest economy in 2025, had an annual GDP of only about five trillion.
Meaning one day Raphael alone would be richer than the entire third-largest economy on Earth.
He closed his eyes, mind still clear despite the excitement.
This was just the haul from one movie world. If he hit another similar world next time…
Buying now was stupid. He had to wait.
At the very least, he should wait until 2011 when gold hit $1,900/oz before considering it.
The system wasn't going anywhere. The gold wasn't going to disappear.
He could afford to wait.
Looking at the number on the panel, Raphael's mouth slowly curved into a smile.
"Keep it stored."
He told himself, "Think of it as a savings account that can't lose."
The panel flickered.
[Saved: Gold (Mount Rushmore Treasure) purchase status]
[Current price valid indefinitely]
[Note: Host may purchase at any time at the current fixed price. Price is unaffected by real-world gold fluctuations.]
Raphael nodded in satisfaction.
He closed the panel and stood, walking to the window.
Outside was the early Asheville morning. The crew was already bustling about.
Raphael took a deep breath, ready to put all his focus back on the film.
Knock knock knock!
A knock came at the door.
His Force perception instantly told him it was Kate.
"I'm coming, darling."
---
In the blink of an eye, Raphael had already been with the crew for a full week.
Most of that week had been spent on rehearsals and fine-tuning.
Director Francis pulled Raphael and the core creatives into meetings every day, going through every scene and every shot.
The script was covered in colorful sticky notes. Some pages had been revised three times and still weren't satisfactory.
Kate's costume had been adjusted twice. The black leather combat suit looked incredible on her, but it was slightly restrictive in movement. The costume department kept measuring and eventually had to tear it apart and rebuild it.
Raphael's wardrobe, on the other hand, was simple.
Stephanie's half-werewolf Edward was written as an artistic type. Normal scenes just required hoodies and jeans. Only the transformation scenes needed heavy special-effects makeup.
Master Chen from the Yuen team drilled fight choreography with him every day. Although Raphael's skills were more than enough, Chen insisted on perfect form and positioning. They often spent half the day in the training area.
The Korean team led by Director Park was equally busy. They had built an indoor set in the studio specifically for the brutal close-quarters combat scenes.
The two action teams worked separately but would occasionally get together to exchange ideas. Even with the language barrier, the gesturing and demonstrations were lively.
Raphael's daily job was discussing the script with Francis and digging deep into the details of the entire trilogy.
Francis was a perfectionist who wanted to know "why" for every single scene.
Why doesn't Edward speak at this moment?
Why doesn't Selene just kill him?
Why do the two of them insist on staying together when they could separate?
Sometimes Raphael got tired of the questions and would simply answer, "Because the audience wants to see them together."
Francis would pause, then nod and scribble notes on the script.
One of the assistant directors privately told Raphael that Francis was always like this. His last film took a year and a half and exhausted all the actors.
Raphael silently calculated his schedule—he still had Van Helsing to shoot. He didn't have a year and a half to burn here.
So over the next few days he started subtly speeding up the discussions.
Using the Force with surgical precision, every meeting Francis walked out of left him thinking "Today's efficiency was excellent," completely unaware his thinking had been gently accelerated.
The production rolled forward day by day at a steady pace.
Until March 21st.
Raphael was in the middle of action practice with Master Chen when his phone started vibrating nonstop on the chair.
An assistant brought it over. It was Ari.
Raphael answered. Ari's voice was so loud even Chen could hear it.
"Rafe, it's time to get ready!"
Raphael pulled the phone away from his ear.
"Ready for what?"
"The Oscars! They're next Monday! Where the hell are you?"
Raphael paused.
He had actually forgotten.
He checked the date—March 21st. No time left.
He had barely hung up when the phone rang again.
This time it was Philip, saying almost the exact same thing.
"Rafe, it's time to get ready!"
Raphael sighed helplessly.
"I know, I know. I just got off the phone with Ari."
Philip laughed on the other end.
"Good. The jet is already arranged for tonight. Pack your things."
Raphael glanced at the set.
Francis was reviewing the last take behind the monitor. Kate was touching up her makeup beside him. Master Chen was still waiting to continue.
"The crew—"
"I already spoke with Francis," Philip cut in. "You've got three days off. Come straight back after the Oscars."
Raphael had nothing left to say.
That afternoon he told Kate.
She was reading the script in her room. When she heard he was leaving, she looked up.
"Oscars?"
"Yeah."
Kate nodded and went back to her script.
"Go ahead. Bring me back a little gold man when you return."
Raphael burst out laughing.
"You're joking, right? There's no way I'm winning one of those—this lifetime probably never."
Kate didn't even raise her head.
Raphael didn't bother arguing. He changed clothes and boarded the private jet back to Los Angeles that same night.