The princess arrives and the prosperous Tang Dynasty begins

After leaving the ruins of the ancient city, Lin Xiao and Li Xuan continued their adventure. This time, their goal was to cross a vast desert. It is said that there are many mysterious ruins and treasures hidden in this desert, but it is also full of dangers and unknown challenges. Despite this, Lin Xiao and Li Xuan were not afraid and decided to find out.

The weather in the desert was extremely bad, with scorching heat during the day and freezing cold at night. The two prepared plenty of water and food, took the map they found in the ruins of the ancient city, and set out on their journey. The desert wind and sand blew on their faces, as if testing their perseverance and courage.

After several days of trekking, they gradually went deeper into the desert, and the surrounding scenery became more and more desolate. In the endless sea of ​​sand, they could only see a few scattered camel thorns and the occasional seagull flying by. Despite this, they always maintained a firm belief that there would be the answers they were looking for ahead.

One evening, they found an oasis behind a sand dune. There was a clear spring in the oasis, surrounded by lush palm trees, like a paradise in the desert. The two decided to stay here for a night to recover their strength and prepare for the next journey.

Just as they were setting up the tent and preparing to enjoy dinner, they suddenly heard a burst of hurried horse hoofbeats in the distance. Lin Xiao and Li Xuan stood up alertly and looked in the direction of the sound, only to see a group of camel-riding bandits approaching them quickly. The bandits were fully armed, holding machetes and bows and arrows, with murderous eyes.

Li Xuan said: "It seems that we are in trouble. These robbers are not friendly. We must be prepared."

Lin Xiao nodded, took out the Taoist runes from his bag, and prepared to deal with the impending danger. The bandits quickly surrounded them, and the leader of the bandits dismounted and walked in front of them, sneering and saying, "You two are carrying a lot of valuables. Hand them over and we can spare your lives."

Lin Xiao and Li Xuan did not back down. Li Xuan said calmly, "We are travelers. We just want to cross this desert and don't want to conflict with anyone."

The bandit leader laughed and said, "In the desert, the strong prey on the weak. Your naive ideas will only get you killed."

After saying that, he waved his hand to signal his men to prepare for action. At this moment, Lin Xiao quickly threw out several runes, which flashed in the air and formed a series of protective barriers. The robbers were startled by this sudden change, but they quickly regained their composure and rushed towards the barrier with their knives.

Lin Xiao used Taoist magic and chanted a spell, and the barrier began to emit a dazzling light, blocking the robbers' attacks. The robber leader was furious and waved his scimitar to try to destroy the barrier, but every attack was bounced back and could not hurt Lin Xiao and Li Xuan at all.

Li Xuan took the opportunity to pick up a dagger and prepared to fight back. He nimbly dodged the robbers' attacks and used the dagger to repel several robbers who tried to approach them. The two cooperated well and gradually gained the upper hand.

Seeing his men losing ground, the bandit leader became increasingly angry and decided to take action himself. He pulled out a huge scimitar, the blade flashing with cold light, and rushed towards Lin Xiao. Lin Xiao responded calmly and used Taoist magic to neutralize the bandit leader's multiple attacks.

However, the bandit leader was obviously more cunning and powerful than ordinary bandits. He saw a flaw and swung his knife at Lin Xiao. Lin Xiao was unable to dodge and his shoulder was scratched by the blade, and blood gushed out instantly.

Seeing this, Li Xuan rushed forward angrily and blocked the bandit leader's attack with his dagger. He and the bandit leader had a fierce duel, with swords and shadows intertwined and sparks flying.

Lin Xiao endured the pain, gritted his teeth, and continued to perform Taoist magic. He took out a special rune from his arms, injected his spiritual power into it, and then threw it at the bandit leader. The rune exploded in the air, releasing a powerful energy that pushed the bandit leader back several steps.

The bandit leader was stunned by the blow. He obviously underestimated Lin Xiao's strength. Taking this opportunity, Li Xuan quickly launched a counterattack and stabbed the bandit leader's shoulder with a sword. The bandit leader screamed and fell to the ground, and the scimitar in his hand fell.

Without their leader, the robbers lost their courage to fight and fled. Lin Xiao and Li Xuan did not chase them, but quickly treated their wounds to prevent infection.

At night, the oasis returned to peace. Lin Xiao and Li Xuan sat by the campfire, thinking about the thrilling experience just now. Li Xuan said: "This time, thanks to your Taoist magic, otherwise we would have had a hard time getting out."

Lin Xiao smiled and said, "We are partners, and we should help each other. The desert is full of dangers, and we must always be vigilant."

The next morning, they continued on their way. After several days of trekking, they finally arrived at an ancient ruin. Hidden deep in the desert, surrounded by tall sand dunes, the ruins looked particularly mysterious and silent.

There are many collapsed buildings and broken statues in the ruins, as if telling the glory and decline of the ancient city. They searched carefully in the ruins and found some ancient artifacts and scrolls, which recorded the history and culture of the ancient city.

Lin Xiao and Li Xuan walked through the ruins carefully, always keeping alert. They knew that the robbers in the desert were not the only danger, and there were many unknown challenges waiting for them.

As they were exploring the ruins, they suddenly heard a low roar in the distance. The two quickly hid behind a huge stone pillar and observed the direction from which the sound came.

They saw a group of giant sandworms crawling slowly. Their bodies were brown and covered with hard shells. Each one was as big as an adult. Lin Xiao whispered, "These sandworms are very dangerous. Their shells are very hard. It is difficult for ordinary weapons to cause damage to them."

Li Xuan nodded and said, "We must be careful not to alarm them."

They quietly bypassed the sandworm swarm and continued to explore the ruins. After some effort, they found an underground palace hidden deep in the ruins. The door of the palace was closed and engraved with complex runes, as if guarding some important secret.

Li Xuan studied these runes carefully and found that they were somewhat similar to the runes he had seen in the ruins of the ancient city before. He speculated that the treasures and secrets of the ancient city might be hidden in this underground palace.

Lin Xiao used Taoist runes to open the palace gate, and they walked in carefully. The palace was dark, with only a few oil lamps on the wall emitting a faint light. The air was filled with a damp and decayed smell, as if no one had been here for a long time.

They walked along the corridors in the palace and found that many rooms were filled with various ancient relics and treasures. These relics recorded the history and culture of the ancient city, and also hid many unsolved mysteries.

In the deepest part of the palace, they found a secret room. In the center of the secret room was a huge altar, on which was placed a crystal ball. A strange light flashed in the crystal ball, as if it contained endless energy.

Lin Xiao and Li Xuan approached the altar and felt the powerful energy coming from the crystal ball. Li Xuan said, "This crystal ball must be hiding an important secret. Maybe it can help us solve the mystery of the desert."

Just as they were about to touch the crystal ball, they suddenly felt a powerful energy fluctuation. The entire chamber began to shake violently, and the dust on the ground flew everywhere. Lin Xiao and Li Xuan were surprised to see that the runes around the altar suddenly emitted a dazzling light, forming a powerful magic barrier that enveloped them.

The air outside the barrier began to distort, as if transmitting some unknown force. Lin Xiao and Li Xuan tried to escape the barrier, but found that they could not escape no matter what. They could only watch the scene around them begin to change dramatically.

At this moment, a mysterious voice sounded in their ears, saying: "Warriors, you have touched the forbidden power. Now you must accept the test, otherwise you will be trapped in this space forever."

Lin Xiao and Li Xuan were shocked, knowing that they were facing an unprecedented test. They had to rely on each other's trust and courage to overcome various difficulties and unlock the secrets of this mysterious space.