They thought that if they followed in his footsteps and repeated what he did when he climbed the mountain, they would be able to replicate his feat.
Unfortunately, no matter how talented the people at the second mortal coil were, they always ran out of energy by the time they reached the fourth section. They were unable to resist the sounds with mental attacks and would have to start all over again.
After numerous tries, those at the second mortal coil had to realize the immense gap between them and Arthur. Thor and Leroy were fine after realizing this gap. But Princess refused to admit it.
Princess had a spiritual talent, so it was easier for her to resist the mental attacks. However, she still needed energy to do so. Because she was always short of energy, she felt unwilling.
She stood at the beginning of the fourth section with an unwilling expression on her face. The terrible sounds of the flute attacked her mind, but the pain they caused her was not as much as the pain she feels for being unable to continue the trial.
The smart thing for her to do is to give up, and she wants to give up after climbing the mountain and failing so many times. But anytime she tries to give up, she hears what Arthur said to her earlier.
Arthur had nodded to her and said humbly, "As long as I’m stronger than you, I’ll be contented."
She was the one who tried to undermine his strength and mock him first. So his words haunt her far more than they should be able to.
The worst part is that what she had said to Arthur was the truth. There were many people much stronger than him in the world.
This is true for Arthur and her as well. The only difference is that Arthur has now joined the ranks of the people stronger than her.
This is something she didn’t want to admit when she saw him overtake her on the mountain. It was why she undermined his strength. But now she couldn’t refute that he was stronger than her.
If she wants to disprove the notion that he is stronger than her, at the very least, she has to be able to reach the edge of the fourth section. She doesn’t even need to get the inheritance.
As long as she reaches the limit, she can say that she was simply unlucky while Arthur was lucky enough to be chosen. So reaching the edge would be good enough for her to regain her pride and innate superiority complex.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t do that. And frankly, it broke something within her.
Her hand stretched forward towards the fourth section with longing. But the pressure pressing her to the ground, the heat trying to cook her alive, and the wind in her face made it impossible for her to take another step.
She tried her very best. Then she ran out of mental energy, which made her lose consciousness. Her eyes rolled in her head, and she was knocked back.
Fortunately, Leroy was behind her. He grabbed her and took her down the mountain gently.
On their way down the mountain, she became conscious. She snuggled into his embrace and cried.
Leroy patted her back reassuringly for a long time. He said to her, "There, there. Arthur is a monster. There is no use comparing yourself to him."
She shook her head and said, "It isn’t only Arthur. There is you and many others too. I am just too weak."
"In the past, I could always find one excuse or another. I could always say that the reason you were able to defeat me is because you cultivate lightning. I could always say that the reason Thor was able to defeat me was because he had a powerful golem."
"But there is no excuse for me to give now when I compare myself to him. He didn’t use any armament, golem, corpse, or beast. I used my armament. Yet I couldn’t complete the trial."
Leroy disagreed with her. "I already told you that Arthur is a monster. He is not normal by any standard. That is why you couldn’t find any justified excuse for why you couldn’t do what he did. He just isn’t normal and shouldn’t be considered with common sense."
His words might be an exaggeration, but they consoled her and made her feel better about herself. However, this didn’t mean that she couldn’t admit what she didn’t want to admit.
So she said to him, "Maybe, and I mean just maybe. Maybe I can be friends with humans. Maybe they are more than servants and slaves. Maybe they are worthy of being my equals."
Leroy didn’t say anything. He just smiled and kissed her head.
Thor, who was watching by the side, didn’t like the sight at all. He tsked in annoyance and said, "Can’t they at least have the decency to do that in private?"
Jason rolled his eyes at him while Goldwyn said meaningfully, "You know what? I’m beginning to suspect that you’re jealous of them."
Thor refused, "No, I’m not."
Goldwyn said with certainty, "I’m sure of it. You must be jealous of something."
Thor asked with disdain, "What could I possibly be jealous of? I just think their behavior is offensive."
Goldwyn began listing things that he thought that Thor would be jealous of while Thor worked hard to refute him.
Jason watched the argument with interest. But his gaze would always wander to the top of the mountain or to the spot above his head where the elders were confronting each other.
Since the elders rose up around the mountain, no one had moved. But they were discussing among themselves with their divine sense.
One of the two elders of the Black Bones sect present at the scene said to the two elders from the Blood Skull sect, "I only want a share of the techniques. I don’t want any resources or tools he gets from the inheritance."