Using his special ability, he inspected the other's background thoroughly.
The answer was, there was none.
Not long after, the second problem also had an answer.
This time it was Zhang Jinluan; the Ancestor Dragon Divine Machine that he refined was also inspected by Tao Qian, who similarly concluded that there were no hidden traps inside.
However, by this time, Tao Qian could no longer afford to ponder these things.
He finally realized that the Ancestor Spirit had assigned him the task of reforging the [Mountain and River Map].
It was not a burden or a hindrance, but rather a great reward, a grand gesture.
At the same time, it was also a sign of immense trust.
The word 'measure' was not used lightly.
As the brilliance on the Longevity Heavenly Track moved swiftly, the blank map gradually began to reveal its contents.
Mountain and River!
It seemed, to be imprinted bit by bit.
And the "medium" in the center was none other than him, Master Tao.
The unimaginable flow of information, like an explosion, first poured into Tao Qian's Divine Soul, then into the Heavenly Destiny Map. The benefits of this process were obvious.
Whether it was wealth, treasures, resource details, or the Secret Book and Lifebound Scripture, cultivation secrets, etc.
Even the thoughts of all the people in the measured territory, various tendencies...all were instantly knowable to Tao Qian if he wished.
Like this moment, Tao Qian had uncovered numerous secrets about Si Xixin that many others were oblivious to, including his preferences, the Secret Book he cultivated from, and some of his vulnerabilities.
Of course, with great benefits come great costs.
Initially, just the flood of information from the Imperial City alone was enough to make Tao Qian's brain swell, as if about to burst.
Complex Records began to burst forth, and as he knew more and more, his "humanity" began to diminish.
In its place, was a supremely domineering air, as if controlling everything, the aura of a Human Emperor.
In his mind, these voices began to roar:
"I am the one destined by heaven."
"With this body, I measure under heaven, omniscient and omnipresent, is this not in accordance with the heavenly mandate, should I not be the one to become this enlightened Human Emperor?"
"I once overthrew the national dynasty system because I felt this system was quite decayed, ultimately it's still the world's populace who suffer, but what if the person becoming the Emperor was me, with my understanding of the world now, no sin, devilry, or decay could escape my Dharma Eye, I would indeed be an unprecedented righteous Human Emperor."
"Imperial City, Fengtian, Desert North, Youliao, Wujiang, Changbai, Wu Jun, New Moon, Dingzhou, Fengcang, Tiannan, Pan Jia, South Lake, East E, Tiandu, Hanxi, Yongzhou, Dayun Province, Southern Yue, Wu Yue, Fumin, Ancient Qin, Qiantang, Jiangnan, Heavenly Mansion, Xiangxi, Qilu, Anqing, Ancient Yu, Bai Yue, Jing Chu, Heavenly Fire, Sanjin...all mine, they are all mine, seventy-two provinces, billions of subjects, destined by heaven, all shall be governed by me as the orthodox ruler."
"Stop being sentimental, become the Emperor, everything under heaven is yours, be it provisions or power, even beauty is yours for the taking, why not accept?"
...
These voices urged crazily, like a Heart Demon, like obsession.
Until at a certain moment, a roar came from deep within Tao Qian's soul:
"Get lost, even mere Demon Thoughts dare to disturb my Dao Heart."
"The cost is exempted!"
It was unclear which of the former or the latter took effect, or if both did.
After these two voices, Tao Qian, located in the [New Mountain and River Map], shuddered violently, and immediately came to his senses.
On his face, a look of relief emerged instantly.
"Good grief, that was a close call."
"Truly a terrifying experience, to know everything, to understand everything, and to be able to control everything...if it were someone else, like Zhang Jinluan or Si Xixin, they likely would've succumbed quickly, even Yu Yanshi and Yin Yuehua would probably be the same."
"Lucky it was me, inherently lazy and indifferent, with no aspirations here, and having a cheat item, I managed to escape this ordeal."
"The Ancestor Spirit may not know my soul's strange ability to exempt costs, but he knew that if there's anyone under heaven who least desires to be Emperor, it must be me, he guessed I had several backup plans, sure to be uncorrupted, that's why he granted me this great benefit."
Tao Qian now understood the key points and couldn't help but feel a sense of awe.
Then, he checked the progress of the reforging.
Seventy-two provinces, most of them had already been measured.
At this moment, Master Tao, claiming to know everything about this Mountain and River was perhaps a bit exaggerated.
But the previous question he pondered now had a clear answer:
The hidden elements within the Ancestor Dragon, not found in core Divine Treasures like the Nine States' Twelve Treasures, not in stillbirth, not in clones, and similarly not within the many descendants of the Ancestor Dragon Bloodline.
Tao Qian had checked all of these.
"This is indeed strange, Master's predictive guess should not be wrong."
"Especially since I've experienced the same ordeal as the Ancestor Dragon, though he didn't resist and actively became the Emperor to avoid corruption of his nature and soul, it must have affected his disposition."
"If I had complied and become the Human Emperor, I would also add ingredients in this Forbidden Technique..."
"Hmm?"
As Tao Qian contemplated, the measurement of the seventy-two provinces officially ended.
The originally blank Heavenly Destiny Wordless Map was now filled with mountains and rivers, bustling with life.
Just when he thought this Refining Treasure was about to be Perfect, suddenly, at this moment, this newly refined Mountain and River Map burst through the Heavenly Track and headed into the Outer Realm.
Still at incredible speed, still measuring.
In a daze, Tao Qian saw a series of extremely shocking sights:
The first scene, the completely unleashed Duobao True Monarch singlehandedly facing twelve opponents with the Ten Thousand Treasure Demon Body, turning the battlefield into chaos, thirteen types of Great Dao Divine Qi colliding and devouring each other.
The second scene was of this realm's land in the Outer Realm, unexpectedly there were numerous unclearly numbered Secret Realm Daoist Fields attached.