Meanwhile, at a different location in a tower, Riboku gathered 50 thousand troops, part of the 100 thousand soldiers he commanded to defeat the northern tribe. He strategically placed them near a nearby city, ready to attack at a critical moment to achieve their objective.
Riboku anticipated that Ouki might detect a hidden army, but he knew that any reinforcements would take time to reach the field. Understanding Ouki's mindset, Riboku aimed to ensure his troops arrived earlier than expected. To achieve this, Riboku divided his army into two groups. The first group was swiftly deployed to the field, while the second group remained positioned to the east of the battle area, ready to join the conflict at a strategic juncture.
Riboku's meticulous planning and strategic deployment aimed to outmaneuver Ouki and the Qin forces, leveraging timing and positioning to gain the upper hand in the ongoing battle.
Riboku reached the field and observed the unfolding situation, but what caught his eye was somewhat unbelievable. Chou Sou had also arrived on the scene alongside Riboku. Riboku pondered to himself, "Why are there more than 80 thousand Qin troops here, and why is the commander's hand absent and covered with clothes?" As he observed, he saw Commander Hou Ken struggling in battle.
In the midst of his thoughts, Gi Ka approached Riboku and proposed aiding their commander, Hou Ken, with a sneak attack on Ouki.
Chou Sou also organized his army into formation and launched an attack on the Qin army. Meanwhile, Gi Ka approaching the battle between Hou Ken and Ouki stealthily. Observing this, the young Shin began running in the direction of Gi Ka to stop him.
While everything was happening exactly as Riboku had expected and all the pieces were gathered in the battle, a soldier came running to the camp with a sweating and grave expression.
"Urgent news, urgent news! Riboku-sama, urgent news!" the soldier exclaimed. Riboku looked at the soldier and asked him to share the news.
"Sir, the 50 thousand troops led by General Chang Mui have been ambushed and burned," said the soldier, his face filled with shock and almost fainting. Riboku was stunned and grabbed the soldier by the collar.
"Tell me exactly what happened," he asked with a shocked and unbelieving expression.
"While the army was crossing the mountains, they sent me and my men to scout the area. When we returned to the army's location, we saw a huge fire engulfing the entire forest area. Our soldiers were caught in the fire, sir! It was horrible! truly horrible!"
"WHAT!!!!!"