The ruins of the "Secondary Energy Nexus" lay on a relatively elevated "ridge" formed from vast stretches of twisted metal frameworks and collapsed concrete.
This was a buffer zone between the Core Pollution Zone and the Outer Desert. The pollution concentration was higher than in the outskirts, yet it did not boil and rage as violently as it did in the core region.
The wreckage was immense, and its former grandeur could still vaguely be seen—arched structures dozens of meters tall now lay broken and collapsed, like the skeleton of some colossal beast;
Countless thick Energy Pipes stretched out from every part of the ruins like tangled blood vessels, disappearing into the surging dark purple mist below or deep underground.
The interior of the ruins was even more complex.
Some areas were covered by thick Pollution Slime Lakes resembling asphalt. Bubbles rose from their surfaces, releasing highly toxic vapors;
Other areas were filled with sharp crystals like Metal Thorn Bushes, along with wandering Guardian Aberrations whose forms lay somewhere between machinery and flesh;
There were also relatively "dry" areas piled high with massive, intricate equipment wreckage.
Most of it had been severely corroded, but the metal and crystals in some key sections still glimmered with a faint sheen.
Ming Xin lay concealed atop a weathered metal beam at the outskirts of the ruins, observing from afar.
He did not rush in. Instead, like the most patient hunter, he spent a long time
Carefully scanning and recording the energy flows, guard distribution, and possible "clean" routes through the ruins.
The malicious and probing Mental Force Fields in the air were far stronger than those in the outskirts, but they were also more "solidified" and "orderly."
They were not like the core region, where a vast will might sweep over him directly