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Stellar energy itself had different classifications. The most primal form of stellar energy came naturally from the stars in the universe. After being transformed by Douluo Star, some of it would be partially refined into a form adapted to the planet.
The two types of stellar energy were naturally different to cultivate.
The benefits of stellar energy that Yun Ming spoke about—breaking free from the constraints of the plane—were best achieved through the use of raw, unaltered stellar energy. However, the amount of raw stellar energy that reached Douluo Star was already pitifully small.
Cultivating stellar energy could be divided into three categories.
First, there was the purest path: fully refining raw stellar energy. No soul masters walked this path—not one. This was because it was both extremely difficult and because raw stellar energy was so scarce. As a compromise, those who refined stellar energy to cultivate soul power usually only occasionally worked with raw stellar energy, while most of the time they used the more common, planet-adapted version. Even then, the effects were limited, though still present.
Yet, even with this compromised approach, soul masters who reached Level 98 found their breakthrough to Level 99 significantly smoother.
It was foreseeable that if one could walk the purest path, the possibility of ascending to godhood truly existed.
Unfortunately, even this compromised path trapped countless prodigies for life, preventing them from maintaining normal cultivation speeds and ultimately leaving them with bleak results.
Even the planet-adapted stellar energy was harder to refine than ordinary ambient energy, though its effects were better, particularly for breaking through bottlenecks and refining soul power. However, if one relied solely on stellar energy to build their foundation and incrementally increase soul power, the speed of cultivation could only be described as snail-like.
Possessing a stellar attribute merely provided the basis to harness and influence the stellar energy in the environment, much like possessing a fire attribute gave the foundation to convert soul power or ambient energy into fire-based power.
Simulated environments?
In an environment rich with stellar energy, one could rely solely on stellar energy to refine soul power while absorbing ambient energy to grow soul power, greatly increasing cultivation speed. As for cultivating stellar energy in such an environment, it was faster than in places where stellar energy was sparse, but the exact speed still depended on the individual soul master's ability to refine it.
The efficiency of refining ambient energy versus stellar energy wasn't comparable, which was the root cause of everything.
During cultivation, using stellar energy to refine soul power fell under the second category of stellar energy cultivation. This method promoted cultivation and was the most common, but it also failed to enjoy the full benefits Yun Ming had mentioned.
The pure path was far harder, with soul power growth akin to a snail's pace, while using stellar energy to refine soul power resulted in faster growth and higher-quality soul power compared to ordinary soul masters. Thus, the latter approach was the most commonly adopted.
The third category involved developing the stellar attribute—cultivating techniques to manipulate and convert stellar energy into practical applications.
This could be pursued simultaneously with the first two categories.
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Returning to the topic at hand, Xu Yuan's reflections on all of this were not without reason.
He looked at the sparse trio of figures in the mecha operation class, feeling helpless.
Mecha technology should not have been so neglected.
Though the pure path of cultivating stellar energy was challenging, the greater difficulty lay in the cultivation environment. If one had access to abundant raw stellar energy, it could certainly accelerate cultivation somewhat.
As for the second path—refining soul power with stellar energy—it wasn't exclusive to soul masters with stellar attributes. With the right environment and abundant stellar energy, anyone could occasionally attempt it.
So, what if one could artificially seek out an environment rich in stellar energy?
For example, piloting a mecha into space to cultivate.
Currently, the Federation's exploration of space was still in its infancy, but they had already developed basic technology to break free from Douluo Star's gravity and enter space.
If this technology could be integrated into mechas, it would open up possibilities for mech pilots to venture into space.
As for survival issues in space, mechas could address those as well.
Of course, this was just a concept. Whether to pursue this direction depended on the choices of individual mech pilots.
As for Xu Yuan, he was certain he would incorporate this direction into his own mecha. He truly wanted to try cultivating in space.
"Beyond these functional aspects, the greatest advantage of mechas lies in their battlefield superiority."
The larger the size, the greater the destructive power.
While red-grade mech pilots might lag far behind four-word battle armor masters in terms of explosive attack power, they could match them in overall destruction.
Large-scale, area-of-effect attacks—this was the true explosive potential of mechas.
Mechas could utilize external energy sources, something battle armor couldn't achieve.
The initial development of mechas was driven by the pursuit of raw power. The reason battle armor masters were now more powerful was simply because battle armor was more specialized.
Lighter and more convenient, battle armor not only amplified soul masters better but also required fewer resources to produce.
Otherwise, if a mecha were constructed entirely from heavenly-forged metals, its power would undoubtedly far surpass that of four-word battle armor.
Mechas were larger, allowing for more and stronger core formations to be inscribed. There was no reason they should be weaker than battle armor.
The reason mech pilots were inferior to battle armor masters boiled down purely to cost!
But Xu Yuan, for now, wasn't constrained by cost.
He was also a blacksmith.
Though he studied auxiliary forging techniques, there was no doubt his talent in forging was undeniable.
The first-grade thousand-refinement technique was inspired by Tang Wulin, but in subsequent forging efforts, Xu Yuan was confident he could rapidly improve on his own.
This confidence stemmed from the spiritual link he had cultivated.
In the future, he had the potential to become a divine craftsman of unparalleled skill.
Naturally, he wouldn't lack heavenly-forged metals, and he wanted to test the strength of constructing a mecha entirely from them.
The pure path of stellar energy could make the breakthrough at Level 99 smoother, but Xu Yuan currently had no intention of walking that path.
It had been a year since Yun Ming explained this to him, yet he still relied on refining ambient energy for cultivation rather than stellar energy. Of course, he did spend a set amount of time each day channeling stellar energy to refine his soul power and blood essence.
In other words, Xu Yuan was following the second path.
He had abandoned the first path.
But that didn't mean he wouldn't study it.
"The Abyss—a great opportunity. I am not the Child of Nature, nor do I possess the Golden Dragon Spear or the Silver Dragon Spear. The vast energy of the Abyss offers me no benefit whatsoever," Xu Yuan reflected inwardly. "Before I encounter the Abyss, my goal is to find a way to gain the ability to devour its energy."
Stellar energy—the raw, primal stellar energy. To study this most fundamental force, to understand how to refine it, control it, and devour it!
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