Dream-Weaving Spider

Biodata

Power Progression

Later entries describe Dream-Weaving Spider manifestations created through Duan Fan's first soul skill, Life from the Brush, rather than the original Soul Beast.

Background / History

Fang Qingshan identified the Dream-Weaving Spider as a suitable first Soul Ring target for Duan Fan's Fantasy Pen. Its silk-weaving ability was expected to grant a summon-creation-type soul skill, potentially allowing Duan Fan to paint combat spiders into existence 6.

Fang Qingshan and Duan Fan tracked a specimen in the Withered Wood Forest by following its grayish-white silk, which carries a faint sour smell. Deeper in the forest, they found an over-400-year-old territorial spider at a hollow dead tree. Fang Qingshan destroyed its silk construct and incapacitated the Soul Beast with his Azure Ox Martial Soul; Duan Fan then delivered the final blow 7.

The resulting Soul Ring became the source of Duan Fan's first soul skill, Life from the Brush. The slain spider's soul was separately absorbed by Duan Fan's Soul-Sucking Battle Axe, slightly strengthening that Martial Soul 8.

Appearance

The original Dream-Weaving Spider had a dark-brown carapace marked with darker patterns. Its body was roughly washbasin-sized, while its eight spread legs reached nearly two feet across 7.

• Eight eyes arranged in three rows; the two foremost eyes glowed faint green 7.
• Produces grayish-white, resilient silk with a faint sour odor 7.
• Duan Fan's early drawn versions resembled the species but were larger, with table-sized bodies and ghostly green eyes 8.
• Later Fantasy Pen manifestations changed from silver-line sketches to ink-wash creations, then gained dark-golden patterns as their strength increased 42 51.

Abilities & Skills

Silk Weaving

Dream-Weaving Spiders do not weave conventional prey-catching webs. Instead, they use silk to construct larger combat spiders that hunt for them.

• A silk mass can rapidly expand and assemble into a spider approximately three times the original creature's size 7.
• The woven spider attacks prey directly; after a kill, it reverts to silk and wraps the prey 7.
• The original specimen created a large silk spider in under two seconds when threatened by Fang Qingshan 7.
• Woven Giant Spiders are more durable than the Dream-Weaving Spider that creates them 28.

*Life from the Brush* Manifestations

After absorbing the Soul Ring, Duan Fan gained the ability to draw Dream-Weaving Spiders with the Fantasy Pen. These manifestations reproduce the species' appearance, physical strength, weaving ability, and combat behavior 8 9.

• Early manifestations possessed the combat power of roughly 600-year Soul Beasts 9.
• Each manifestation can weave an additional Giant Spider, allowing Duan Fan to build layered defensive and offensive formations 8 18.
• Early on, Duan Fan could maintain a drawn spider until he dismissed it or it was destroyed; its destruction caused him no backlash 9.
• He initially could draw three Dream-Weaving Spiders, creating a six-spider force once each wove a Giant Spider 18 19.
• During his spar with Hu Liena, Duan Fan reached a limit of four directly drawn spiders 25 26.
• The manifestations are immune to mental control and mental attacks, allowing them to block Hu Liena's Charm and resist her mentally corrosive flames 24 25.
• They ignore pain and toxins, continuing to struggle even when bound and pierced by poisonous Ghost Vines 42.
• Dream-Weaving Spiders can be used as scouting units; Duan Fan employed them to locate Three-Eyed Griffins in the Star Dou Forest 46.

Story Role / Major Arcs

• First Soul Ring hunt — Serves as Duan Fan's chosen first Soul Beast and establishes his summon-creation development path 6 7.
• First soul skill — Its Soul Ring grants Life from the Brush, enabling Duan Fan to create and command spider constructs with their native silk-weaving ability 8 9.
• Spirit Hall Academy battles — A drawn Dream-Weaving Spider defeats Wen Xiyue by forcing her off the Soul Fighting Platform; Duan Fan later demonstrates three spiders and three woven Giant Spiders against Li Ruolan 18 19.
• Spar with Hu Liena — Duan Fan uses a rotating spider-and-Giant-Spider formation to keep Hu Liena away, exhaust her, and force her concession 24 25 26.
• Later growth — The spiders become larger, faster to create, useful for reconnaissance, and ultimately reach 4,000-year-level strength in groups of ten 42 46 51.

Relationships

• Duan Fan — Killed the documented specimen, absorbed its Soul Ring, and gained the ability to create Dream-Weaving Spider manifestations through Life from the Brush 7 8.
• Fang Qingshan — Researched the species as a Soul Ring option, led the hunt, incapacitated the target, and assessed the strength of Duan Fan's summoned spiders 6 7 9.
• Black Flame Demon Fox — Dream-Weaving Spiders are among the fox's prey; Duan Fan later uses a drawn spider as bait while seeking his second Soul Ring 30 34.

Trivia

• Dream-Weaving Spiders are territorial; Fang Qingshan stated that the presence of the over-400-year specimen meant no other major danger would be found within roughly one hundred meters 7.
• A small silk-wrapped carcass can help estimate a Dream-Weaving Spider's age; a watermelon-sized silk bundle indicated a nearby spider below one hundred years old 7.