Verse 10 sets up the later story of the Lamanite attack on the city of Noah. At this point, however, the Lamanite generals decide not to force the issue at Ammonihah, but attempt to find a weaker entry point. Therefore, the retreat “into the wilderness.” The Book of Mormon is not clear on what it means when it describes a wilderness. Certainly, it indicated a land where there was no population, but it doesn’t indicate why it was unoccupied. The probability is that it indicated a mountainous area, the plausible mountain range that had provided the Lamanite army cover as they came up from the south and then turned east to attack Ammonihah.