matter is energy and energy is matter. the false vacuum state is where the energy comes from (which is at every point in space-time). even in the universe rig

matter is energy and energy is matter. the false vacuum state is where the energy comes from (which is at every point in space-time). even in the universe right now the vacuum expectation value of any field is nonzero since virtual particles are being created and destroyed spontaneously at every point. the false vacuum is similar. when the symmetry is broken that energy is released everywhere. since energy is matter i assume that means that the energy really is "stored" in a quantum field, so a particle of some sort. the vacuum expectation value of that particle must be large, so that when symmetry is broken those virtual particles decay and create the shower of matter and energy which drives inflation.