The Last Alchemist

Jesus Gomez photographs a quartered stone on a Spanish wreck for Harrison Caldwell, who kills him by increasing the pressure in his diving suit and cutting off his air. Professor Augustine Cryx interprets the stone but rejects its gold-making promise; Caldwell poisons him after learning that he will not supply the formula. In Michigan, Remo saves Beatrice Bendetsen from thin ice, then destroys a television camera and film to preserve his cover. Smith responds to the report and assigns Remo and Chiun to investigate missing uranium. Caldwell’s family scheme uses uranium stolen from federal shipments in a fictional gold-making process; three drivers are murdered and a public account denies any uranium is missing.

At McKeesport, security director Consuelo Bonner investigates the diversion and identifies dispatcher James Brewster. Caldwell’s assassin Francisco Braun arranges attacks, including recruiting the fictional Islamic Knights of Boston to assault the investigators; Remo and Chiun survive. Brewster escapes to Brazil under the name Arnold Diaz. Braun uses the pursuit to lure Bonner, Remo and Chiun up the Giri tributary, where they encounter people Chiun calls the Anxitlgiri; Braun and Chiun give sharply conflicting accounts of them. Remo finds Brewster and questions him about shipping uranium on strange routes. Brewster says he needed money, that an unnamed voice from the nuclear agency ordered him, and that he thought it was legal; he says he did not know it would be used for bombs and suggests the thieves might have wanted to start an electrical company.

Remo lets Brewster fall from a high balcony, and Bonner sees the body hit the ground. Remo takes Brewster’s gold pendant despite Chiun’s warning. Braun later attacks Remo at the Nuclear Control Agency; Remo kills Braun but becomes gravely unwell. Chiun attributes his condition to the pendant and retells Master Go’s story of cursed gold. Smith tells the unnamed U.S. President that the missing uranium could make enough bombs to devastate much of the country. Caldwell kills NCA director Bennett Wilson and launches a public anti-violence campaign that also helps him gather information about the covert killings attributed to Remo and Chiun. Bonner finds evidence of Wilson’s role but Caldwell imprisons her and sends armed men to Folcroft.

Chiun restores Remo from a deathlike state; together they defeat the attackers and take three prisoners. Remo identifies Caldwell as the uranium thief. Chiun briefly accepts Caldwell’s offer of wealth and honor, then sees the apothecary-jar mark on the gold and kills Caldwell for adulterating an assassin’s tribute; he and Remo free the captives, including Bonner.