Wind erosion is a primary driver of soil degradation on the Loess Plateau. Soil physical crust plays a critical role in stabilizing aeolian sandy soil and preventing wind erosion. This study investigated the evolution of physical crust characteristics and their response to soil wind erosion under varying rainfall intensities (40, 80, 120 mm & centerdot;h(-1)) and wind speeds (9, 11, 13 m & centerdot;s(-1)) through indoor simulated rainfall and wind tunnel experiments. Research indicated that increased rainfall intensity significantly facilitated crust development, notably enhancing thickness, hardness, and shear strength. Compared to bare soil, physical crusts reduced wind erosion intensity and sediment transport rate by over 95%, and decreased saltation height by over 70%. As crust strength increased, soil wind erosion intensity, sediment transport rate, and saltation height progressively declined. Conversely, both aerodynamic roughness and friction velocity exhibited nonlinear responses to increasing crust strength, highlighting complex surface-airflow interactions. Redundancy Analysis (RDA) and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) revealed that rainfall intensity indirectly mitigated wind erosion by regulating crust mechanical properties; specifically, crust hardness and shear strength were identified as the primary controlling factors. Furthermore, a multivariate regression model incorporating crust hardness, shear strength, bulk density, >0.25 mm aggregate content, and erodible particles was established, demonstrating high predictive accuracy (R-2 = 0.85) for wind erosion intensity. These findings provide scientific insights into the anti-erosion mechanisms of physical crusts.