Ghain asked calmly, never taking his eyes off Ethan. "Hazen, how much time is left?"
"Thirty seconds," Hazen replied excitedly.
"Perfect. How about you all help me count down, huh?" Ghain asked.
Ethan trembled as a sinister smile spread across Ghain's lips.
"What have I gotten myself into?" he whispered.
"Thirty, twenty-nine, twenty-eight…" The crowd, including Hazen, joined in the countdown.
Ghain dashed towards Ethan, throwing him into the air and slamming him heavily to the ground.
"Ow!" Ethan cried out.
"Dang!" someone said agitatedly, shaking his friend, whose soul was drawn to the battle, unaware of his surroundings.
Ghain picked Ethan up from the ground. Without giving him time to recover, he delivered sixteen solid punches to Ethan's abdomen, each strike breaking a bone.
Ethan felt like he was being put into a grinding machine. The pain from Ghain's merciless assault was overwhelming.