Low-level enough? Did that count as an advantage?
"Big Brother, how is that an advantage?"
"Wouldn't it be easier to wait until we're stronger, then take control of a few powerful factions?"
"You don't understand. The stronger a faction is, the more selfish interests it has, and the more likely things are to go wrong."
"But the Heavenly Origin Martial Grounds is different. It's low-level enough that there aren't so many twists and turns."
"And it needs time to grow. That won't happen overnight."
"Most importantly, it knows how to be grateful."
"But given enough time, that gratitude won't last forever, will it?"
"When our descendants finally come along and need help, what if they refuse to honor the debt?"
"Then we set the rules first. Once the rules are in place, someone will follow them."
"Don't forget, as long as we're around, they'll have no choice but to follow the rules. Even if they have other ideas, they won't dare act on them."
"My whole life has been arranged for me. I don't want my descendants to have everything arranged for them too."
"But isn't that what you're doing now?"
"It's different. I'm only clearing a path for them and preparing ahead of time. I won't interfere in anything they do. I'm just giving them a safety net."
"In my case, my father and the others did far more than clear a path. They kept interfering."
"And it wasn't once or twice. It was... countless interventions, countless attempts."
Chen Changan thought of everything he had seen at the third checkpoint of Ascension Road. Even he didn't know how many times he had started over.
Every fresh start had been a different life, a different path. If what he had seen was real, then his father had used him again