Lurk, observe, analyze.
Like a tiny parasite clinging to the skin of a giant beast, Ming Xin cautiously and patiently probed the "blood vessels" and "pulse" of this massive polluted body.
The target pipe lay about twenty zhang diagonally below the ventilation shaft where he was hiding. Roughly wide enough for one person to wrap their arms around, it was half-embedded in a "floor" formed of writhing flesh walls and rusted metal.
The pipe walls displayed a bizarre mixture of dark silver and purplish red.
The originally precise energy-conducting runes could still barely be recognized, but they had now twisted into chaotic patterns that seemed to be screaming in agony.
The pipe was not completely still. It slowly wriggled like an intestine, and the pulsating "blood vessels" and "nerve bundles" on its surface manifested its energy transport.
Ming Xin condensed his perception into "feelers" finer than strands of hair. During every brief interval when the regional Energy Field slightly "relaxed" with the core's pulse,
he would fleetingly "touch" the outer wall of the pipe, collecting the frequency of its energy fluctuations, information about its material composition, and the "scent" of the substances flowing within.
It was a tedious and dangerous process. Every "touch" was like brushing the nose of a sleeping beast. The slightest mistake could trigger a violent defensive response.
Ming Xin had to suppress his own aura and energy fluctuations until they were nearly nonexistent. After every "touch," he had to withdraw immediately,
completely blend into the shadows, and wait at least ten core-pulse cycles. Only after confirming it was safe did he dare make his next attempt.
Time passed amid silence and tension. Deep within his soul, the mark of the "Silver White Stream" faintly heated up, as though urging him onward, yet also resonating with him.