Before she set off, Shen Yanxiao went to Ye Qing, Yun Qi, and Xie Ling to ask for a leave of absence.
Ye Qing and Yun Qi reacted to her request calmly. However, when Xie Ling learned that Shen Yanxiao wanted more days off, even though she had just restarted her lessons, he almost lost his mind.
Shen Yanxiao quietly snuck away while Xie Ling bombarded her with blame.
She hired a carriage and a wheeler and started her way to the Graveyard of the Sun.
It was a quiet ride. As they went further away from the Black City, the areas along the road were increasingly sparsely populated.
Shen Yanxiao had hired an older man in his 50s to be her wheeler. She had wanted to find someone younger since it was a long and arduous journey. However, most of the wheelers had run away with tails tucked between their legs when they learned of her destination. The old man was the only one who had stayed.