According to the semi-legendary account of the Liber de Hyda, Ernulf was represented in the ordeal by his own champion who defeated the king's representative. However, Ernulf was so disgusted at the accusation that he renounced all his lands in England and left the country for ever. Later that year Ernulf enlisted in the First Crusade and met his end during the Siege of Antioch.Liber Monasterii de Hyda, p. 302 Facing death, he refused the aid of a doctor, saying: "No doctor can reach me except he for whom I have undertaken this pilgrimage."
