Correct path? There are two paths in this story. Us and China. If china was bad, they'd be on our side. What other side is worth considering? even if china ends up failing, there is no better horse in the race.

It will be hundreds of years before someone else will get to try. And there is no reason to think their campfire tales of the sunken cities of cuba and vietnam will give them better odds than china has with the biggest richest country on earth with all the means of production in it.