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Wood corresponds to the sour taste; the treatment principle is to use pungent (dispersing) taste for purging and sour (astringing) taste for tonifying. Fire corresponds to the sweet taste (taking the meaning of soothing); the treatment principle is to use salty (softening) taste for purging and sweet (relaxing) taste for tonifying. Earth corresponds to the bitter taste (taking the meaning of drying and firming); the treatment principle is to use sweet (calming) taste for purging and bitter (firming) taste for tonifying. Metal corresponds to pungent (dispersing) taste for purging and sour (astringing) taste for tonifying. Water corresponds to salty (softening) taste for purging and bitter (firming) taste for tonifying; this is how the tonification and purgation of the Six Qi follow the changes of the Guest Qi. For the Jueyin Wind-Liver channel, use pungent taste for tonification and sour taste for purgation, while sweet taste can relieve urgency; for the Shaoyin Ministerial-Fire channel, one must know that sour taste astringes and sweet taste purges. Salty taste tonifies and sweet taste purges, with salty softening interacting mutually; sweet taste tonifies and bitter taste purges, with sweet relaxing the Spleen. The Lung Channel employs sour taste for tonification and bitter taste for purgation; the Kidney Water is deduced using bitter taste for tonification and salty taste for purgation. Furthermore, employing bitter taste to firm and pungent taste to moisten is particularly suitable for Taiyang disease.

Although the two Fires (Ministerial Fire and Sovereign Fire) differ in nature, their application principles are identical. Wood uses pungent taste for tonification and sour taste for purgation. The Meridian Commentary states: Pungent taste disperses, thus it is used for tonification; Sour taste astringes, thus it is used for purgation. The "Correction" claims this forms its own independent meaning, which remains unclear today. Treatment methods must also consider whether the Si Tian (Chief Qi) or Zai Quan (Guest Qi) allows for violation; for example, if cold is severe in summer, heat may be used to treat heat; if not severe, reversal should not be employed.

Sour taste primarily astringes and belongs to the Liver; Bitter taste firms and enters the Heart, Sweet taste relaxes the Spleen. Pungent nature and taste disperse and can regulate Lung Qi; Salty taste softens and is suitable for the Kidney.

Salty-Cold, the Two Fires, and Wood-Pungent-Cool; Sweet-Hot when in command treats Taiyang Disease. Bitter reduces Taiyin Qi, suitable for Bitter-Hot; Yangming channel flavors are tasted as Bitter-Warm.

Clarify the rotation of Yin and Yang regarding the Six Qi, distinguish the hierarchy of North-South annual governance; observe the causes of victory and defeat between Host and Guest Qi, examine the variations of excessive victory, depression, and retaliation. This must be done through pulse diagnosis before one can become a skilled physician. When the Five Movements are insufficient, the element that overcomes it comes to suppress; when the Five Movements are excessive, the element that cannot overcome it suffers from pathogenic factors. Heaven and Earth's Six Qi encounter each other; correspondence leads to harmony, non-correspondence leads to reversal. When Qi agrees, there is peace; when Qi disagrees, disease arises. Only the Qi of Heaven and Earth's victory and retaliation does not manifest in symptoms; this refers to the First Qi ending at the Third Qi being Heaven's victory, and the Fourth Qi ending at the Final Qi being Earth's retaliation. Because it relies on Qi rather than position, it is not observed through physical symptoms.

In other cases, one must understand the Six Pulses. Thus the Classic states: When Jueyin arrives, the pulse is Wiry (Xian); when Shaoyin arrives, the pulse is Deep (Chen); when Shaoyang arrives, the pulse is Large and Floating; when Yangming arrives, the pulse is Short and Choppy (Se); when Taiyang arrives, the pulse is Large and Long. Arrival with harmony indicates normalcy; arrival with excess indicates disease; arrival with reversal indicates disease; late arrival indicates disease; early arrival indicates disease; exchange of Yin and Yang indicates danger; improper position indicates disease (appearing in another position); alternating positions indicate disease; losing one's position indicates danger; these are what is meant.

However, human life, although possessing the Five Elements within one body, has vital energy rooted internally but also expands and contracts with the Qi of Heaven and Earth. How is this demonstrated? Such as Spring pulse being Wiry, Summer pulse being Surging (Hong), Autumn pulse being Hairy (Mao), Winter pulse being Stone-like (Shi). Humans are born by sensing the Moving Qi and become ill by sensing the Moving Qi. The Classic states: Violating it leads to transformation, transformation leads to disease. All things grow responding to the world's movement, Qi and Pulse respond accordingly. One must establish Annual Qi theory to diagnose and differentiate. The Treatise on Normal People's Qi and Image states: When Taiyang pulse arrives, it is Surging, Large, and Long; when Shaoyang pulse arrives, it is suddenly rapid then slow, suddenly short then long; when Yangming pulse arrives, it is Floating, Large, and Short. The Nan Jing cites this, also discussing the pulses of the Three Yin and Three Yang, speaking from the perspective of the depth of initial generation of Yin and Yang.

The so-called Six Pulses refer to Movement and Qi, victory and retaliation encountering each other, just when exercising authority, responding during the time of their transformation, hence the pulse movements differ. If the times of changing Movement and Qi arrive and are seen, without premature retaliation, insufficiency, or excess, it is called a Normal Pulse. If there is deviation, one should know that disease exists.