Han Zizhi explained, "This is woven from cloud silk, naturally pastel." As he spoke, a look of envy appeared on Han Lingling's face. Cloud silk is not ordinary silk; it is produced by a unique spider from Nanling—the Colorful Cloud Spider. Each spider is about the size of a fist, preying on birds, and is very fierce in nature. They are rare, and the white silk they produce cannot be used for clothing. Only the small sac of color the size of the tip of a forefinger in their abdomen, when washed with a special method, can yield fibrous threads. These threads are naturally pink and are far more vivid than any artificial dye, beautiful like the clouds on the horizon and yet tougher than steel.
The clothes in this box required the essence of silk from at least over a thousand Colorful Cloud Spiders to weave, a feat not to be underestimated.
