The golden core within Xiao's body continued to store energy without pause, yet compared to the vast torrent pouring in, it was still far from sufficient. Even the golden core itself was nearing saturation.
To avoid the catastrophic fate of exploding from excess energy, Xiao made a swift decision and immediately diverted the surplus energy into the dimensional space.
Unfortunately, compared to the terrifying speed at which stellar energy was being absorbed, this transfer rate was nothing more than a drop in the ocean.
At best, it only delayed the inevitable—
from ten minutes… to barely an hour.
Left with no other choice, Xiao decisively reduced the number of solar wings.
From nine pairs…
to six…
to three…
When the wings finally stabilized at six, a fragile equilibrium was achieved. The intake and output of energy barely balanced, and Xiao narrowly avoided the disaster of bodily collapse from runaway expansion.
"It seems six wings are my current limit," Xiao murmured softly, dissatisfaction flickering across his face.
"If I had more Daluo Dao Fragments, the power of the dimensional farm could probably be strengthened further."
In recent years, the Daluo Arena had triggered only once—and that was the Elden Ring World, a place Xiao still did not dare to enter lightly.
Aside from that, more than a decade had passed in relative calm.
Too calm.
Xiao urgently needed more Daluo Fragments. He had already realized that the growth rate of the dimensional farm was beginning to lag behind his own development.
Xiao gently unfurled the dazzling solar wings behind him.
In the next instant, a tremendous surge of energy erupted outward, rapidly forming a circular field centered on his body.
A transparent barrier expanded, enclosing everything within a hundred-meter radius.
This energy field acted like an invisible shield.
It purified cosmic radiation harmful to living beings, automatically decomposed surrounding moisture to generate breathable air, and maintained a perfectly habitable environment.
Even more astonishingly, it possessed adaptive scalability.
The field could expand or contract automatically in response to Xiao's energy output, allowing him to precisely control its size and minimize energy consumption.
Xiao gave this ability a name:
[Stellar Barrier Field].
This force field closely resembled the Helio spheric barrier of a star system—much like how Earth uses its magnetic field and atmosphere to shield life from cosmic radiation.
The stellar barrier generated by the solar matrix operated on the same principle.
Its essence was simple yet absolute:
completely isolate oneself from the external universe through one's own energy radiation.
By creating a small world that belonged solely to oneself—perfectly stable and comfortable—one could survive safely even in the most extreme environments imaginable.
…
…
Huuu—
Without hesitation, Xiao activated the solar matrix engine.
As violent winds howled past his ears, his figure tore through space and entered the legendary Underworld Sea.
What surprised him, however, was that upon entering this region, he saw none of the underworld creatures described by the space pirates. He had originally intended to capture a few high-grade specimens for research.
Instead, there was nothing.
Nothing but vast emptiness.
Strange rays of energy surged outside the Stellar Barrier like turbulent currents, weaving together into dazzling, dreamlike auroras of countless colors.
Beautiful.
Fantastical.
And lethally dangerous.
Those gorgeous auroras—if they struck an unprotected lifeform—would instantly shatter it completely, pulverizing body and genes alike into nothingness.
Yet before the Stellar Barrier, this danger meant absolutely nothing.
For Xiao, the entire journey was effortless.
Flying with the Stellar Barrier deployed felt no different from running freely on solid ground. A single flap of his wings carried him an enormous distance with minimal kinetic expenditure.
Planets and meteorites drifted by like clearly marked coordinates lining a road.
The overwhelming energy field flattened all external disturbances, creating an absolutely safe "sidewalk" through space.
No matter how fast he moved, even sudden obstacles posed no threat. Xiao never lost control, never overshot, never faltered.
After personally experiencing the power of the Stellar Barrier Field, a realization slowly formed in Xiao's mind.
Perhaps this is why there are no underworld creatures near the world of One Piece.
Those so-called underworld creatures were likely not native inhabitants of the Underworld Sea at all.
More likely—
They were mutated organisms, brought into stellar barrier zones by cosmic civilizations and exposed to cosmic radiation for extended periods.
According to the memories of space pirates and the conclusions of interstellar bio-environment researchers, the denser the presence of cosmic populations, the more underworld creatures appeared.
Some cosmic civilizations even believed these creatures were reincarnations of their dead.
In Xiao's view, this was nonsense.
The real reason was far simpler.
When a spacecraft shuts down, its stellar barrier does not immediately dissipate. As long as stellar energy remains, the barrier can persist for a long time.
Thus, the more prosperous a planet is—and the more ships that come and go—the more stellar barrier fields overlap and merge.
Eventually, they form massive warp-field zones.
These zones are, by nature, comfort regions where living beings can survive.
As a result, creatures that accidentally fell into the Underworld Sea were able to survive within these artificial safe zones.
Over generations, through reproduction and mutation, they adapted—eventually becoming the so-called underworld creatures, living permanently within these warped regions.
This explained everything.
Cosmic travelers didn't encounter many underworld creatures because they were abundant.
They encountered them because those creatures could only survive within the routes carved out by stellar barrier fields.
They couldn't exist anywhere else.
The relationship between cosmic civilizations and underworld creatures was no different from that between humans and cockroaches.
People think cockroaches are incredibly tenacious, appearing everywhere.
But in truth—
Cockroaches survive because humans support them.
In truly wild, uninhabited regions, cockroaches are rare.
If humanity disappeared from the planet, cockroaches would go extinct within ten years.
It was never the cockroaches that were resilient.
It was humans—
who built warm, stable environments that allowed them to thrive.
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