The storm carried dust forward, with giant yellow dragons swirling wildly and huge waves of sand churning as if to devour the entire world.
Streaks of lightning occasionally flashed across the sand dunes...
As soon as Xuanyuan Han and his entourage stepped into the desert, they found it almost impossible to move forward due to the sand waves crashing against them from a short distance ahead.
However, all the followers remained steadfast in their beliefs, and not one of them retreated.
Suddenly, Wei Ning faintly heard someone shouting.
But after looking around carefully, he couldn't see anything, so he asked with some doubt, "Your Highness, did you hear anything?"
Xuanyuan Han listened carefully, but seemed to hear nothing, so he asked, "What was that sound?"
Just as the two stopped and looked at each other, the shout suddenly came again.
Even though all I could hear was the deafening sound of sand grains colliding with the storm, this sound was exceptionally clear.
"Your Highness, where are you? Don't go any further! The sandstorm is coming! Come back, all of you..."
At this point, the two of them simultaneously let out a scream.
"It's Yun'er..."
"It's Her Highness the Princess..."
"So what should we do now?" Wei Ning asked after a pause.
Xuan Yuanhan suddenly tensed up: "Why did she follow us?"
Wei Ning thought for a moment and said, "The Princess Consort must be worried that His Highness might encounter danger in the desert, which is why she came along."
Xuanyuan Han seemed to find it hard to believe his ears, so he listened carefully for a while longer.
For a moment, however, he could no longer hear that familiar voice.
So he wondered to himself, "Could it be that because she is the one thing I've been most worried about on this journey, I'm hallucinating?"
He glanced at the road ahead and firmly ordered again, "Continue onward."
The group of people continued their firm march toward the direction where the rolling sand dunes were coming from.
But after taking only a few steps, the shouts came again, clear and distinct: "Your Highness, stop walking! Turn back now! The sandstorm is coming! Don't make this pointless sacrifice!"
"It really is her!"
"The sound seems to be right next to my ear. It's so close. Could it be that she really has entered the desert?"
Upon hearing this, Xuan Yuanhan paused again and pondered for a long time before finally making his final decision: "Quickly turn back and find the Queen Consort for me!"
The crowd followed closely.
And on the other side of the desert.
A white mask covered Yi Shangyun's face. He walked forward with great difficulty, his steps uneven, supporting himself with his hands as he shouted forward with almost all his might.
"Your Highness, where are you? Where are you?"
"Your Highness, please don't go any further..."
"Your Highness, please come back quickly..."
"A sandstorm is coming; we can't go any further..."
"Your Highness, come back quickly! Yun'er is so scared, Yun'er is really scared..."
"It's all Yun'er's fault. Yun'er shouldn't have told Your Highness about the divine spring in the desert, putting Your Highness in such a dangerous situation."
"Yun'er was wrong, I was wrong."
"Please, come back to Yun'er's side."
"Your Highness, Your Highness..."
She had been wandering alone in the vast desert for far too long, searching for an incredibly long time...
However, no trace of Xuanyuan Han's men ever passed by.
In this dark and gloomy world, where only raging winds and towering waves carry sand and gravel in constant churning, what can possibly leave a trace...?
She could hardly believe it, yet she couldn't help but wonder if she was too late, or if Xuan Yuanhan had already suffered some harm.
At this thought, she collapsed to the ground, burying her face in her hands and sobbing uncontrollably, "I'm sorry, Your Highness, I'm so sorry..."
But in an instant, she quickly adjusted her emotions and rekindled her hope.
He shook his head vigorously, refusing to accept his own thoughts: "No, no, His Highness wouldn't just abandon me like this, absolutely not."
"His Highness is the prince of all the people, the blessing of all the people, the hope of all living beings, and the guardian deity bestowed upon the people by Heaven. He is protected by Heaven, and he will never encounter misfortune so easily."
With that thought, she quickly wiped away her tears, finally mustered her spirits, stood up, and continued searching forward.
"Yun'er..."
"Your Highness..."
"Your Highness, where are you...?"
Suddenly, various shouts echoed through the desert, mingling with the sandstorm.
After an unknown amount of time, Wei Ning wondered to himself, "Why is it that the Princess Consort's voice is clearly echoing in my ears, yet I can't see her in person?"
Xuanyuan Han anxiously tried to push aside the boundless, dim world before him so he could see things more clearly.
But the more I tried to clear the way, the more chaotic everything became.
On the other side, Yi Shangyun's situation wasn't much better.
"Why? Why can't I find His Highness's voice, or the soldiers calling my name, even though I clearly heard them?"
In this world where everyone is trapped in a predicament, surrounded by a dim yellow haze and flying sand.
They could only rely on the sounds they heard from each other, and only during those rare moments of respite amidst the howling wind could they hear each other's calls and discern each other's directions and locations.
It was as if everything was shrouded in mystery.
Xuanyuan Han followed the occasional voice of Yi Shangyun as he retreated step by step.
Suddenly, a border marker with two bright red characters, "Lu County," appeared before my eyes—a cold yet sacred stone monument.
Wei Ning rushed over to check and exclaimed in disbelief, "Your Highness, we have already left the desert and returned to Lu County!"
Xuanyuan Han frowned, thinking, "We finally made it deep into the desert, and now how did we manage to return to where we started without anyone noticing! But why can't I find her anywhere?"
At this moment, he was clearly filled with regret. So he stopped in his tracks and looked around.
"This scene seems familiar. I should have known better. She would never have waited there obediently for my return. If I had known that the trip to Lu County would be so dangerous, I should never have let her come."
But just then...
Behind Xuanyuan Han, a yellow sand dragon that appeared to be over a hundred feet tall suddenly appeared, roaring and rolling towards him.
Its aura seemed poised to sweep over and absorb everything in the entire space.
"No... Your Highness... Your Highness..." Wei Ning stared wide-eyed at the enormous thing behind him, stunned and speechless.
Upon seeing Wei Ning's surprised face, everyone turned to look at him and were instantly stunned.
Forced by them, the group had no choice but to retreat again.
Just as the giant dragon, spinning rapidly forward, was about to engulf everyone in the sand wall...
Suddenly, Yi Shangyun's voice rang out: "Your Highness, be careful..."
In an instant, a moment of clarity appeared out of nowhere.
"It really is her!"
Xuanyuan Han then turned his head and saw that Yi Shangyun was standing less than three zhang away from him.
The crowd also shouted in unison, "Your Highness, Princess..."
Yi Shangyun turned to the side and smiled at everyone, saying with great relief, "I've finally found you all. Thank goodness, you're all alright."
After saying this, he lifted his foot and gradually moved closer to the sand wall.
She went to meet Huanglong alone, her thin and frail body seemingly torn apart by the hurricane.
Xuanyuan Han also turned around and chased after her in terror: "Yun'er, no, come back quickly!"
Upon seeing this, the soldiers behind him also stopped Xuanyuan Han, saying, "Your Highness, you must not approach any further!"
Faced with such a massive disaster, Yi Shangyun remained calm and showed no hesitation whatsoever.
"Your Highness, if I tell you who Wei Mingxuan is, will we go back to the way we were before, with no suspicion between us?"
Yi Shangyun turned around, smiled at Xuan Yuanhan, and said.
"No...no...what do you want to do?"
Xuanyuan Han had a vague feeling that she was about to do something, and he shook his head repeatedly, trying to stop her.
Yi Shangyun took a deep breath and said resolutely, "Your Highness, I've made up my mind. As long as Yun'er comes back alive this time, I swear, I will definitely tell you who Wei Mingxuan really is."
Xuanyuan Han noticed that something was clearly wrong with her and became extremely anxious.
"No... what are you trying to do? Whatever you want to do, I will not allow it. I don't care about that man named Wei Mingxuan at all. The only person I care about is you. I won't allow you to do anything foolish. Come back, come back to my side!"
As he spoke, Xuanyuan Han reached out his hands to her, trying to hold her firmly.
However, Yi Shangyun showed no sign of stopping and continued to retreat gradually.
She smiled gently at Xuanyuan Han, then lowered her head and placed a hand lightly on her abdomen, saying, "Child, don't be afraid, this time, I will definitely protect you!"
"Yun'er, listen to me, come to my side quickly and give me your hand..." Xuan Yuanhan cautiously approached her.
Then, Yi Shangyun slowly pulled something out of his body and held it up with one hand.
Xuanyuan Han looked closely and realized it was the jade-colored porcelain bottle.
Yi Shangyun kept one hand gently stroking her abdomen, while holding up the porcelain bottle with the other.
At the same time, he muttered to himself, "A mountain is not famous for its height, but for the immortals who dwell there. Water is not sacred for its depth, but for the dragons that inhabit it. Is that so? If so, I can definitely help Your Highness protect Lu County, and I should also be able to... protect the descendants of the next guardian, right? I hope I haven't misunderstood what you meant."
"A mountain is not famous for its height, but for the immortals dwelling there. Water is not sacred for its depth, but for the dragons residing within. Yun'er, what are you talking about?"
Xuanyuan Han faintly heard her murmuring these words and asked in confusion.
"Your Highness, thank you for coming into my world, thank you for your love, and for accompanying me through the happiest and most unforgettable period of my life. Yun'er wants to tell Your Highness that Yun'er really loves Your Highness, really loves you..."
As soon as he finished speaking, the hundred-foot-long yellow dragon, carrying layers of sand walls that seemed to surge like a tidal wave, roared towards Yi Shangyun...
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