Through an integrated study of Mesozoic and Palaeozoic petroleum geology in southern China and a summing-up of the results of exploration, the authors tentatively put forward a set of methods of studying petroleum systems in modified residual basins or superposed basins. Its core idea is to put emphasis on the study of the dynamic evolution of petroleum systems. The tempo-spatial evolution, hydrocarbon-generating processes and hydrocarbon-generating intensities and amounts of resources in different geological stages of chief source rocks are mainly deduced backward by 3-D basin modelling. The regularities of formation and destruction of oil and gas accumulations are summarized by analyzing the fossil and existing oil and gas accumulations, the direction of migration is studied by palaeo-structural analysis, and the dynamic evolution of Palaeozoic and Mesozoic petroleum systems in southern China is studied according to stages of major tectonic movements. The authors suggest that the realistic exploration Through an integrated study of Mesozoic and Palaeozoic petroleum geology in southern China and a summing-up of the results of exploration, the authors tentatively put forward a set of methods of studying petroleum systems in modified residual basins or superposed basins. Its core idea is to put emphasis on the study of the dynamic evolution of petroleum systems. The tempo-spatial evolution, hydrocarbon-generating processes and hydrocarbon-generating intensities and amounts of resources in different geological stages of chief source rocks are mainly deduced backward by 3-D basin modeling The regularities of formation and destruction of oil and gas accumulations are summarized by analyzing the fossil and existing oil and gas accumulations, the direction of migration is studied by palaeo-structural analysis, and the dynamic evolution of Palaeozoic and Mesozoic petroleum systems in southern China is studied according to stages of major tectonic movements. The authors suggest that the rea listic exploration