Surviving Legacy Code KT Sessions

A few days ago, I got allocated to a massive legacy banking project. It is a great opportunity, and I genuinely felt happy. But as the KT sessions went on, it slowly shifted from excitement to absolute confusion. The codebase is pure spaghetti. The vibe was clear: figure it out yourself. They know I work hard (for context, 3 yoe), but they don't know the details of how I actually survive these handovers. Normally, I brush off these things and just read the docs. But this time, it hit differently. The logic was so convoluted I had to start quietly using Claude Code and Cursor just to decipher the mess we get handed. It made me question my journey. Made me wonder: Am I doing enough as an engineer, or have I fallen behind by relying on Claude 4? Still, I've stayed consistent, and the AI helps me build a solid understanding of the systems. Anyways, Thanks for reading. I just needed to get this off my chest.