Cinematic Desolation: Unveiling the Mysteries of Aksai Oil Town Ghost City

A Frozen Moment in Time

1.Located at the foot of the majestic Dangjin: Mountain in Aksai Kazakh Autonomous County, Gansu Province, the Aksai Oil Town Ruins (historically known as Boluo Zhuanjing) stand as a haunting monument to a vanished era. At an altitude of 2,800 meters, this once-thriving administrative and industrial hub served as the former county seat of Aksai from 1954 until the late 1990s. Today, it is an expansive "Ghost City" where the silence of the high-plateau desert has reclaimed streets once filled with the energy of oil workers and nomadic residents.

The Rise and Fall of Boluo Zhuanjing

The town's history is deeply intertwined with China's early oil exploration efforts. Established in the mid-20th century, Boluo Zhuanjing was a fully functional urban center equipped with theaters, hospitals, schools, and government offices to support thousands of workers from the nearby oilfields. However, by the late 1990s, research revealed that the town was located in an area with high background radiation levels, and the lack of fresh water further complicated living conditions. In 1998, the entire population was relocated to the newly built Hongliuwan Town, leaving the old city to fall into its current state of ruin.

The Cinematic "Nine-Story Demon Tower"

The site gained international fame as the primary filming location for the blockbuster movie "Chronicles of the Ghostly Tribe" (also known as The Nine-Story Demon Tower). The film utilized the town's natural decay to create a surreal, apocalyptic atmosphere. Visitors can still see iconic props left behind by the production, including a crashed bus embedded in the road, derelict gas stations, and sand-filled theaters. These elements blend the town's real historical tragedy with cinematic fantasy, creating a unique "wasteland aesthetic" that attracts photographers and urban explorers from across the globe.

Highland Desolation and Visual Splendor

Walking through the ruins, one feels a profound sense of "time travel". The architecture reflects the socialist-industrial style of the 1950s-1980s, with red-brick buildings and slogans still faintly visible on the crumbling walls. The town is surrounded by the vast Gobi desert and set against the dramatic backdrop of the Qilian and Altyn-Tagh mountains, offering a visual contrast between the fragility of human construction and the eternal power of the natural landscape.