Rambunctious' boosts were not put to waste. Although the effective range was not that high since this was just an Uncommon Skill, bards were broken in the sense that they shared their buffs just by playing through the party system so they did not require their targets to hear it as long as they were not too far away.
Merely the debuffs required the traditional method, allowing those closest to RamButt to have an easier time dealing with their quarry. As for the Orator himself, he was currently standing amidst a group of void monsters.
They were all gazing at him in fear while he pointed his thin sword at a particular void monster while talking down to it in a mocking tone.
"No wonder why she left you. Not only are you overweight, ugly, and generally stupid beyond compare, you have a donger the size of your future potential… almost non-existent."
"Your mother probably curses the day she gave birth to you. That must be marked on her calendar as the worst day of her life, as she could have easily chosen to pass you up by accepting your father's seed through another method. "
"Heh, she must regret that so much that much of her hate had been shifted to your father. Every day they have an argument, she always ends with 'life would be so much better if you had just beaten that batch of s.p.e.r.ms out, so we wouldn't have to deal with… that', while storming out. "
"I cannot imagine her agony. Carrying hope for 9 months in her belly, toiling, living simple and then suffering through painful childbirth for all her hopes to shatter as a colossal retard popped out."
Rambunctious came closer. "In fact, to appease her soul and end her constant suffering, she wouldn't begrudge you if you ended it all for her. Just raise your claw and plunge it into your chest, and you will be able to see her genuinely smile for the first time in your life. Ah, what a joyous moment it would surely be, wouldn't it?"
The void monster he was speaking to was shaking, its mouth beginning to froth as its eyes were lost in a daze. It was heavily affected by Rambunctious' words because the Orator's Charisma stat was so far above the monster that it was an embarrassment to even compare them.
The skill RamButt was using to decimate the monster was his recently acquired Rank 2 skill, Disenchant which he had cleverly combined with his other skills, Sweet Talker and Deceptive Words.
｢Disenchant – Active skill
Effect: Insult the s.e.x.u.a.l, combative, and mental prowess of all enemies, causing them to lose all their buffs and suffer a 30% decrease to all stats.
Duration: 10 minutes
Cooldown: 1 day.｣
The combo led to the current scenario, where the void monster raised its claws slowly and plunged it into its own heart, its indistinct face breaking into a happy smile as it thought about its mother's release from torment.
The other void monsters stepped back in fear and shock, not understanding how this fellow could convince one of their own to kill himself so willingly. However, RamButt's skills were neither considered physical nor magical, since they were obviously mental.
Not psychic, but mental. Nearly all skills based on Charisma could be categorized into the mental category basically. Loving Aunt's Subjugate, Roma's former Confusion skill based on her s.e.xy dance, and Zaine's Seduction skill.
The resistance of void monsters only covered physical and magical, so against mental attacks, they were as vulnerable as newborn babies.
This showed in the sense that void monsters… did not even have mothers, dongers, or wives. F.u.c.k bro, they were literally vestiges of anti-matter born from a collection of Abyssal Energy, climbing their way from Rank 1 to higher heights based on their age and Abyssal Energy acc.u.mulation.
This was a perfect demonstration of why bards in general were treated with a mixture of amus.e.m.e.nt yet wariness in most settings. It was great to have them on your side, but just imagine having to fight someone who could convince you that breathing air was a choice you could make, but selecting to do so would mean you were no patriot.
On another side of the battlefield, a strange black blur could be seen speeding across the zone with extreme dexterity. Not only that, but it struck out with punches and kicks so fast that the eye could barely follow.
When that blur of primal force paused to smash an enemy into the ground with a light stomp, it turned out to be the handsome Kiran, who was wearing his usual apathetic expression on his face.
The nicknamed Dark Monk lightly gazed around the battlefield, seeking new targets while evaluating the progress of his allies. He was greatly impressed by what he saw.
Around Kiran glowed two types of auras. One was a strange light-brown energy that seemed to represent the energy of the universe, while the other was a light green color that seemed to represent the force of nature.
The brown energy was his Buddha Lineage's Noble Energy, which was a unique form of energy generated by the aptly called Noble Energy Inheritance that could be used in countless ways.
It was able to power attacks, strengthen speed, reflexes, and perception, purify evil spirits, cure sickness, heal wounds, fortify children and the elderly, among others.
The green energy was Internal Force, the legendary energy that all pseudo-cultivators used. It could power attacks, increase strength, speed, reflexes, and perception, heal wounds, fortify children and the elderly, and create a form of defense for the user.
Hey, it almost seemed like the Noble Energy and Internal Force were similar, huh? Both had similar functions, only that Noble Energy was much stronger and more versatile, but the limit of bloodline energy didn't allow users of this Inheritance to go very far.
If Noble Energy and Internal Force were similar, did the Buddha Lineage have something to do with cultivation? That old tripe about Immortals and whatnot?
Whatever the case, Kiran had amassed a strong stock of Internal Force within him. Like mana or stamina, he had a fixed amount at any given time and it would replenish itself automatically over a period of time without his conscious effort.
｢Cultivate – Active skill
Effect: Meditate to channel the world's energy through your body, increasing your quantity and quality of Qi at a steady pace.
Note: Can only be done out of combat, and in places with ambient Worldly Energy.
Duration: 3 hours
Cooldown: 20 hours.｣
Kiran was third in the list of damage dealers, just slightly behind Jada and Jade while significantly behind Slim Fatty, yet above everyone else.
This was due to the dual buff of his Noble Energy and Internal Force. Kiran also had the Sarira of his mother, Juno, a legendary prodigy of the Buddha Lineage. Her ability to control Noble Energy had been off the charts, and over the past few months, she had imparted all she knew into her even more talented son.
Juno was more than satisfied with her son's abilities. She was utterly content to sit back and watch her baby boy live his life, occasionally nagging him when Sublime was around so that she could see some grandkids, much to his chagrin.
As for Kiran, one could imagine him being under the effects of a twofold berserk, only that the duration was long as hell and he did not lose his sanity. He used his Noble Energy and Internal Force to buff his strength, speed, and reflexes, which was what allowed him to move like a blur through the battlefield.
Interestingly, Internal Force and Noble Energy were able to deal extra damage to void monsters, so he did not need to Aether-imbue himself. Kiran mostly fought using his fists and a special pair of Legendary gauntlets he had acquired through the Rank 7 shop.
What assisted his extreme fighting style was the second class passive that made him not just a Monk, but a true Martial Artist.
｢Unarmed Combat Mastery – Passive skill
Effect: The User can use any form of hand-to-hand combat skills or techniques without draining stamina, and the damage and defense when using such techniques is increased by 30%.｣
With this, he never needed to worry about stamina, so he could technically fight endlessly, not to mention the boost to his damage. 30% damage and defense basically meant he had pseudo-Rank Suppression on enemies at the same Rank.
Not to mention he had many active skills from his days as a Monk, like his tried-and-true Attack Rush!
｢Attack Rush – Active skill
Effect: Punch furiously at one or multiple targets in a row. Attacks are 8% less accurate, but deal 55% more damage and are 55% faster than the users' current attack speed. It drains 28% more stamina.
Duration: 1 minute
Cooldown: 8 minutes｣
Kiran roared and dived back into the battle by activating his beloved active skill that had never failed him. He had used it so often that he even gave it his own name, since the system provided one was quite boring.
"Moonlight Purple Overdrive!"
Like a natural disaster, Kiran became a mirage of punches. It looked like he had 1,000 hands, but those were just the afterimages of each punch he fired out, so fast were they that they numbered the triple digits per second.
On top of that, his skill was buffed by his two energies and his passive skill. To add more flame to the fire, Kiran was targeting multiple foes one after that other, quickly dispatching enemy after enemy with his endless punches.
"Sha Sha Sha Sha Sha Sha Sha Sha!" He cried out with every punch he fired.
Juno smacked her lips. 'Son, I know you're a boy, but must you really shout the name of your technique, as well as this ambiguous battle cry that seems like it barely dodges a copyright strike?'
'Well, it must be a guy thing, because Walter liked doing that too… hmm.'
Thinking about how her son and his father were so similar, Juno wore a happy smile that brightened the Sarira she habituated.
"SHAAAAA!!" Kiran roared as his flood of blows came to an end, a long trail of destroyed void monsters left in his wake. For the moment, he had climbed to occupy the number 1 damage dealer position, but he knew it wouldn't last with how ferocious the other two were.
As such, he bolted right back into the fray and began using his own martial arts techniques to fight in tandem with his energies and his class.
Uno laughed and banged his hammer on his shield, roaring out. At this particular time, the entire area of void monsters around him suddenly turned towards his direction with hatred and malevolence in their eyes.
They screamed and charged at him, aiming to smash the fellow flat for his insolence!
Uno grinned widely and raised his hammer, banging it onto his Epic shield with heavy force. This created a great shockwave that blew all enemies in front of him back.
Unfortunately, void monsters did not have ears or the like, otherwise they have been deafened and concussed by it. This was not a skill, but a technique Uno had developed on his own during the last 6 months.
Heh, in terms of skills though, Uno had many. For one, he braced his shield before him and charged into the midst of the enemies rushing towards him.
｢Shield Charge – Active skill
Effect: Rush into the enemy with your shield braced, clearing a bloody path for your allies to follow as the vanguard. This knockbacks all enemies within the charge distance.
Cooldown: 1 day.｣
Every enemy he collided with was blown away to some corner, slightly dazed by the hit and vulnerable enough to allow the other core members who surveyed the battlefield like Silent Walker or Sublime Notion to finish them off.
Uno ended his charge and turned in a semi-circle, bashing all void monsters in range with his hammer, smashing many heads into a pulp. Still ferocious as ever, he activated his shield's active skill right after.
｢Active 1 – Shield Toss: Throw the item like a boomerang, dealing 140% blunt damage and stunning the target for 6 seconds. The Shield will return to the arm of the user. Cooldown: 9 minutes.｣
Like the old representative superhero of the Central Country, Captain Something-or-the-other, Uno tossed his shield forwards as it curved in the air and banged against many void monsters in a short radius around his location.