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Ge Hong stated: "Gui Zhu (Ghost Tethering Disease) is one of the Five Shi Zhu (Five Corpse Tethering Diseases). Its pathological changes manifest in various ways, generally causing chills and fever, dripping discomfort, a silent and depressed demeanor, with the patient unaware of specific sources of pain, feeling unwell everywhere. Over years and months, it gradually leads to stagnation and debility, eventually resulting in death. It can transmit to others, even wiping out an entire family. Upon perceiving such symptoms, one should urgently treat with one liver of a water civet (Tan), dried in the shade, pounded into powder, taken as one 'Fang Cun Bi' (a square-inch measure) per dose, three times daily. If not cured, prepare another batch. The *Zhou Hou Bei Ji Fang* (Handbook of Prescriptions for Emergencies) also states this prescription is miraculous and effective. The water civet is merely a beast, yet its liver can cure Gui Zhu; why is this? Generally, creatures that shun humans and dwell apart, emerging at night and hiding by day, belong to the Yin category. Using a Yin-category creature to treat obscure and hidden diseases aligns with what the *I Ching* (Book of Changes) calls 'same qi attracts same qi' (Tong Qi Xiang Qiu), and what the *Huang Di Nei Jing* (Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon) refers to as 'diminishing [pathogens] through their affinity' (Shuai Zhi Yi Shu). The water civet possesses all five zang and six fu organs, yet only its liver is used. The Liver belongs to Jueyin (Jueyin Meridian), governs the storage of the Hun (Ethereal Soul), making its use particularly refined. A proverb states that owls can treat chest qi pain; this too relies on using Yin-category entities to treat obscure ailments."

Xu Shuwei, in his *Ben Shi Fang* (Prescriptions from My Cabinet), wrote: "During the Xuanhe era, a Daoist priest at Tianqing Temple conducted interrogations with extreme rigor. At that time, a woman submitted a petition claiming she was possessed. Shortly after, the possessed individual spoke, saying: 'It is not I who am tormenting you, but another ghost, which acts because the patient’s vital energy is declining.' It stated that it had already taken form within the patient's lungs, transforming into a worm that eats the lung channels, thus causing hemoptysis (coughing up blood) and hoarseness. The priest whipped the entity, asking if this worm had any fears or taboos. After a long silence, upon being whipped again, it finally said: 'Let me speak; I fear only powdered water civet claws mixed with wine. If taken, I will depart.' The patient's family followed this advice, and she recovered. This is something I witnessed personally. Water civet liver and claws are parts of the same body. The liver embodies the extreme Yin nature of the civet, while the claws embody its extreme Yang utility. The liver stores the civet's essence, and the claws facilitate its function; therefore, both are extraordinarily effective."

The *Ji Shen Lu* (Records of Divine Spirits) records: "Someone suffered from Lao Ji (Consumptive Disease), which transmitted among several people, causing multiple deaths. Later, a young woman fell ill. People placed her in a cabinet, nailed it shut, and sank it in the river, hoping to cut off the source of infection. Her body drifted to Jinshan, where a fisherman found it strange, pulled her ashore, and saw she was still alive. He took her to his fishing hut and fed her many eels. Her illness healed, and she later became his wife. Additionally, the eighteen-year-old daughter of Elder Shao from Mirror Lake in Yuezhou suffered from Zhai Ji (Phthisis/Tuberculosis) for years. She sought treatment via acupuncture and moxibustion without success, and physicians were ineffective. A fisherman named Zhao Shi boiled eel soup for her to eat. After finishing it, her internal heat and other ailments vanished. Hearing these two accounts, people began feeding eels to anyone suffering from Zhai Ji, but most did not recover. I believe the nature of the eel is to remain dormant when weather is mild and active when winds are rough; it is a scaled creature that drives away wind. If used to treat Feng Shi (Wind Corpse), there is no case that does not heal. However, if used indiscriminately for Zhai Ji, it may not work. Feng Shi is one of the Five Zhu diseases. Its symptoms include wandering pain in the four limbs with unclear localization, frequent episodes of drowsiness and confusion, exacerbation during wind and snow, progressing to critical severity and death."