After a standoff lasting more than 100 days, Sima Yi heard from civilians that Zhuge Liang had died from illness and the Shu army had burnt down their camp and retreated. He then led his troops to pursue the enemy and caught up with them, but withdrew when the Shu forces got into battle formation. Some days later, Sima Yi surveyed the remains of the Shu camp and thereafter reportedly exclaimed: "He was a genius." He also concluded that Zhuge Liang was indeed dead when he saw that the Shu army had hastily retreated. Xin Pi felt that they could not be certain about Zhuge Liang's death yet, but Sima Yi said: "The most important things in an army are its documents, troops, horses, and supplies. (Zhuge Liang) has abandoned all of them. How can a person lose his five most important organs and still be alive? We should quickly pursue (the enemy)." The ground in the Guanzhong region was full of "Tribulus terrestris" so Sima Yi sent 2,000 men wearing wooden clogs with flat soles to clear the path before his main army advanced and continued pursuing the enemy, although he retreated when he eventually encountered the Shu forces. When Sima Yi reached Chi'an (), he asked the civilians living there about Zhuge Liang and heard that there was a saying: "A dead Zhuge (Liang) scares away a living Zhongda." When Sima Yi heard that, he laughed and said: "I can predict the thoughts of the living but I can't predict the dead's."