Noah crouched to examine the black mushroom caps as a thick corrosive liquid oozed from them. The acid exposed the large soulless' skeletal torso while they harvested the other plants. Blackcap mushrooms emerged from multiple locations, forming an intricate network inside the corpse. Noah stopped for a moment to think of a strategy on how he could safely remove the fungi. Noah activated his [Six Spirit Arms] ability, reaching toward a mushroom growing out of the dead soulless' skull.

"Wait! Don't pull it out yet!" Lyn shouted suddenly.

"Why?" Noah asked while looking at the boy, questioningly.

"Let me try something," Lyn said while pushing underneath Noah's ethereal arms to crouch down in front of the mushrooms.

Lyn hovered his palms above the fungi as blue-lifeforce gathered on his hands, illuminating the skull with an eerie light. The mushrooms retreated into the sinister exposed bone of the soulless corpse. The twisted skull's teeth clattered together creepily as the torso jerked upward in an attempt to sit upright. Noah jumped backward, dragging Lyn with him as he pushed the boy protectively behind his back. The skeleton suddenly stopped moving before collapsing back into the shallow grave, like a puppet with its strings cut.

"Haha, it worked!" Lyn shouted excitedly.

"You did that?" Noah curiously asked while crouching down to examine the corpse closely.

"Yes, but I ran out of stamina to maintain it. It uses a lot. I need to get more," Lyn answered with a grimace.

The boy reached into his pocket to pull out the coin purse he had looted from the old crone in the fire. He opened it while hesitating, pulling out a handful of hexagonal dull-white crystals, before reluctantly putting the purse away. They flared with white-light before disappearing as Lyn absorbed the lifeforce contained within. He once again pushed Noah to the side as he activated his [Flora Manipulation] ability to have a second attempt.

This time was more successful. The soulless skeleton managed to free itself from the soil as it stood awkwardly. Mushrooms could be seen rapidly sprouting as they consumed the lifeforce being supplied by Lyn's ability. The ooze formed a protective layer over its bones as it eroded the remaining flesh away. The skeleton made a single, unsteady step before once again collapsing into a heap.

"I can't do it. It's too hard to control. I give up," Lyn said dejectedly.

"Yes, you can. Do it for Maddy," Noah said encouragingly to the boy.

"Do it for Maddy…" Lyn spoke to himself as he seemed to have an idea.

Lyn withdrew the coin purse from his pocket once more, pausing to look at it. He opened it to retrieve the last remaining origin crystal contained inside. It was a blue-colored ability origin crystal. He brought it to his lips, whispering something Noah chose to ignore as he politely looked away. Lyn gave the crystal a final kiss before resolutely absorbing it.

It surprisingly pushed him over the threshold to advance into grade two. The boy stood still as his body underwent subtle changes. He became taller as his features became fierce, to more closely resemble the appearance of Noah as his withered body recovered. The boy woke up from his trance a short time later. Blue-lifeforce moved subtly under the surface of his skin when he moved, indicating that he had successfully advanced to grade two. Both Noah and Lyn were stunned speechless by this unexpected development. But it's what Lyn revealed next that was the most surprising.

"My ability evolved! Before, when I picked up Maddy's crystal, I had a strange feeling that she was helping me. After I absorbed it, I felt a rush of energy transform my body. It even changed my [Flora Manipulation] ability! It's now a tier 3 - rare ability called [Parasitic Flora Control]. It gives me full control of a plant instead of trying to move it like a puppet," Lyn babbled with barely contained excitement.

"Are you ready to try again?" Noah patiently asked.

"Yes!" Lyn agreed adamantly.

Noah held the red-painted metal head of the fire escape axe and leaned on it casually for support to watch Lyn's newly-evolved ability effect. While Noah rested, Lyn prepared to activate his [Parasitic Flora Control] ability, but something distracted him from doing so. Lyn looked up towards the sky, his eyes opening in wonder.

"Woah, is that the sky?" Lyn exclaimed.

Noah took a moment to look upwards in appreciation before replying.

"It's beautiful, isn't it? A lot of terrible things have happened since the Arrival. It brings out the worst in people for the sake of just surviving. But the System gave us many wonders too. Make sure to use your abilities to help people, not to hurt them. Don't ever become like the Fallen," Noah said philosophically.

"I won't. I swear," Lyn promised.

Lyn returned his focus to the fungi covered skeleton inside the shallow grave as his new ability activated. Blue light illuminated the blackcap mushrooms, causing them to shrink away. They began to divide and multiply until the skeleton was obscured from sight, with only the skull's face with its sinister soulless features remaining uncovered. The fungi had become similar in appearance to shaggy fur as it grew in length. The corpse stood upright with a sudden, agile movement. It no longer moved with the disconcerting awkwardness of a puppet with its strings cut. It moved almost as if it was alive.

"What are you going to call your new creation?" Noah asked curiously.

"It's a fungal zombie," Lyn replied seriously.

"That's an appropriate name for it," Noah said.

He became aware of smoke blanketing the garden of horror from the burning cottage. An inhuman scream of rage and agony rang out from the nearby woods as the building collapsed. Leaving the pair mystified about what it may have belonged to.

"I think that we should leave now before the fire attracts too many predators. I wish we had rescued the roast venison from the fire before we left. I'm famished," Noah said as his stomach rumbled.