Chapter Three: Three Minutes, Thirty Days

Seven seconds taught him the distance between them. Deflection Step showed him exits; it could not give his body a professional fighter’s speed. Every frantic comment and gift drove Burn Points higher. [Current Burn Points: 986.] Draw conditioning! [Temporary conditioning skill acquired: Rhythmic Breathing—Beginner.] Air stopped battering his lungs. Four counts in, two held, six out. His heart retreated from the brink. He abandoned the thought of winning and repeatedly guided Ghost toward the mat’s edge, forcing him to arrest his own momentum. After one minute, Lin Ran had absorbed eleven blows. After two, blood marked his lip, but his footwork held.