How to Continue Exploring Lost in the Sands in Genshin Impact

As a long-time gamer and Genshin Impact enthusiast, I‘m constantly scouring the vast open world of Teyvat for new challenges and hidden secrets. The latest Sumeru region has proven to be full of mysterious ruins, puzzles, and areas just waiting to be uncovered. One such locale that had me enthralled was the sprawling underground temple known as "Lost in the Sands."

When I first stumbled upon this desert labyrinth, I was immediately intrigued by the ancient aesthetic and strange cubes scattered about. However, my journey soon hit a roadblock, as large sealed doors blocked the paths deeper into the ruins. Thankfully, with some clever problem-solving and help from my varied elemental party members, I was able to continue exploring Lost in the Sands.

In this detailed guide, I‘ll walk you through exactly how I was able to progress further into the Lost in the Sands ruins in Genshin Impact. With the right preparation and puzzle-solving techniques, you too can uncover the secrets buried beneath the sands.

Overview of Lost in the Sands

Let‘s first discuss this new Sumeru area for some context. Lost in the Sands is an expansive underground temple located in the southern desert region. It features a sprawling layout of tunnels, chambers, and dead ends. Throughout the ruins, you‘ll find ancient mechanisms and cubes that act as keys to unlocking sealed doors.

Clearing out the sand-filled rooms and activating these clever cubic puzzles is the key to delving deeper into the temple. But it can be extremely easy to get turned around or stuck if you don‘t have the right party and approach.

Based on my experience, here’s a quick overview of what you can expect when exploring the Lost in the Sands ruins:

Maze-like layout with many branching paths
Locked ruin doors that require activating nearby cubes
Element-based puzzles and challenges
Powerful elite enemies like Ruin Drakes
Precious and luxurious chests hidden behind puzzles
Lots of climbing and platforming to reach cubes and doors
Respawning cubes and timers that reset room puzzles

Simply put, the Lost in the Sands ruins contain some of the most complex and demanding environmental puzzles I’ve encountered in Sumeru. But the rewards are well worth the headache, as you’ll gain adventure experience, loot, and access to even more parts of the underground temple.

Prerequisites for Accessing Lost in the Sands

Before you can even begin navigating the Lost in the Sands ruins, you need to meet a few prerequisites:

Reach Adventure Rank 40 – This ensures you’ve unlocked the Sumeru region and related Archon quests.
Complete the “Prying Eyes” World Quest – Finishing this quest grants you access to the southern desert where the ruins entrance is located.
Activate the Statue of the Seven in Sumeru Desert – This statue provides healing and faster Elemental Burst regeneration to aid exploration.
Unlock the ability to swap party members – You’ll need to frequently change party members to solve puzzles.

Checking all those boxes will provide the means to start investigating the desert ruins. I recommend having a well-balanced party with elements like Anemo, Pyro, Electro, and Hydro before entering.

Now let’s dive into the step-by-step process I used to continue exploring the Lost in the Sands area.

Step 1: Activate the First Cube

Upon entering the ruins, you’ll immediately notice a large sealed stone door blocking the way forward. To open it, you must first activate the cube next to the door.

I recommend switching to the Anemo Traveler or a character like Xiao with gliding abilities. Use their Elemental Skill or Burst to create an updraft and ride the wind current upwards into the cube.

This will unlock the door, allowing you to venture further inside.

Step 2: Defeat Enemies and Locate the Second Cube

Proceed through the now open door and defeat the few monsters in your path. Keep following the tunnel until you come across a second sealed door with a closed cube beside it.

Once again, switch to your Anemo character and use their skills to glide into the cube. Activating it will unlock the door as well as summon some platforms along the walls.

Step 3: Take the Lift Down

Go through the open door and continue forward until you reach a lift on the right side. Interact with the lift to ride it down to a lower level of the ruins.

Follow the path from the lift and enter a large open chamber with several conspicuous unlit torches along the walls.

Step 4: Light the Torches with Pyro Characters

This chamber contains a puzzle that requires igniting all four torches simultaneously to unlock access to the next area.

I opened my party setup screen and swapped in Amber to handle this pyro-focused challenge. Use Amber‘s Elemental Skill to shoot fire arrows at each torch until they are all lit up.

Other characters like Bennett, Xiangling, Yanfei, etc. also work well. Just be sure to conserve their skill cooldowns and Burst energy.

Step 5: Defeat Flying Enemies with Electro

After lighting all four torches successfully, you’ll notice some strange vine-like enemies emerge called Dendrograna.

To quickly defeat these pests, I brought out Raiden Shogun to use her powerful Electro attacks. Taking down all the Dendrograna summoned an Exquisite Chest to appear as a reward.

Step 6: Locate and Activate the Third Cube

With the flying enemies cleared, head to the back of the room near the chest to find another sealed cube. Interact with it to activate the cube, which opens several more hidden doors along the chamber walls.

Step 7: Descend the Stairs and Collect the Seal

Pick one of the newly opened doors (I chose the far right one) and proceed down two sets of stairs. At the bottom you’ll find an object on the ground called the Sacred Seal: Valley.

Make sure to collect the seal, then continue into the next path that unlocks afterward.

Step 8: Watch the Cutscene for the Next Objective

As you continue forward, a short cutscene will play showing your character picking up the seal. This completes the “Continue exploring Lost in the Sands” objective.

Step 9: Start Investigating the Ruins with Jeht

After the cutscene, your adventure journal will update with the new goal to “Continue investigating the ruins with Jeht.”

Interact with Jeht and follow her lead as you both venture deeper into the ruins while the Sumeru Archon quest continues.

And that covers the full process I used to explore the initial sections of the expansive Lost in the Sands ruins! As you can see, it requires paying close attention to puzzle sequences, changing party members frequently, and otherwise thinking outside the box.

But the mental challenge of unraveling each room is incredibly rewarding. Let’s keep exploring this fascinating temple together, my friend!

Tips to Fully Navigate the Lost in the Sands Ruins

Based on my experience spelunking the sandy depths of this temple, here are some tips to help you traverse and solve puzzles within the Lost in the Sands ruins:

Bring a diverse party – As evidenced already, you’ll need to constantly swap between elements to activate cubes, defeat enemies, and manipulate mechanisms. A balanced team like Anemo/Pyro/Electro/Hydro is ideal.
Use Elemental Sight – Toggle this ability frequently to more easily spot interactive objects like torches, cubes, and pressure plates obscured by sand.
Save your Bursts – Try to rely on Skills first since Bursts take longer to recharge. You don’t want to waste them on weak enemies.
Light torches quickly – Some of the torch-based puzzles have short time limits before resetting and sealing the doors again. Activate them rapidly.
Watch for hidden cubes – Not all cubes are easily visible. Some are hidden high up on walls and require creative gliding to reach.
Open your chests – Take time after puzzles to loot Precious and Luxurious Chests scattered around chambers for primo/mora rewards.
Study the map – With so many branching paths, it helps to utilize your map and place custom pins to keep track of where you’ve been.
Come prepared – Make sure to cook plenty of healing/revival food and rest at the desert Statue of the Seven before tackling the ruins’ dangerous foes.

Those tips should help you safely traverse the sprawling Lost in the Sands ruins while uncovering all of its secret chests and puzzles. Just stay focused, be prepared to swap party members, and keep your eyes open.

Let’s keep this exploration adventure going! I’m happy to tackle more questions about navigating Sumeru’s vast desert. Feel free to ask, my friend.