Investment will of course always be at risk, nothing is certain in this world, even when we invest gold which is a reference for all investments there is always a risk that the price of gold can go down, but if we don't dare to take risks then our lives will not change so things the best now is to continue to invest even though at risk of loss.
I don't think that gold is a reference for all other investments even though gold is already digital, because gold is a good asset but different from cryptocurrency investments and other real estate assets. Risk is part that needs to be understood and loss is part of the process to achieve the desired profit or hope, so obviously there is no need to be afraid of this because when someone has the determination to make their life change for the better, of course they have to have struggles in their life.
gold now looks more reliable than many assets against the backdrop of what is happening in the world right now. From investments, I prefer crypto only from the top 50 for this investment, this is all that has a reputation and at least some use anywhere. I'm not interested in new projects yet, as the market is not very stable right now.
Now is not the time to look at new projects or products that don't have fans, because new projects with new products that they produce obviously still need time to develop. So seeing what is more certain as you said is the best option for now besides real estate investments such as gold and others, because I personally also see investments that are more certain to target better returns in the future.