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The clarity of the spirit and the five colors are the external splendor of Qi (vital energy). A red complexion should be like white silk wrapping cinnabar, not like hematite; a white complexion should be like goose feathers, not like salt; a green complexion should be like the luster of dark jade, not like indigo; a yellow complexion should be like silk wrapping realgar, not like loess soil; a black complexion should be like multiple layers of lacquer, not like earth or charcoal color. If the subtle images of the five colors appear directly without concealment, one's lifespan will not be long.

Colors correspond to flavors and the Zang organs: White corresponds to the Lung and pungent flavor; Red to the Heart and bitter flavor; Green to the Liver and sour flavor; Yellow to the Spleen and sweet flavor; Black to the Kidney and salty flavor. Thus, White corresponds to skin; Red to vessels; Green to sinews; Yellow to flesh; Black to bones. Therefore, if the complexion appears like withered grass, death ensues; like dried zhi shi fruit, death ensues; like dust from a leaking roof, death ensues; like clotted blood, death ensues; like dry bone, death ensues. These are the signs of death in the five colors. If the complexion appears like the feather of a kingfisher, life is indicated; like a rooster's comb, life is indicated; like the belly of a crab, life is indicated; like pig fat, life is indicated; like the feather of a crow, life is indicated. These are the signs of life in the five colors.

Life arising in the Heart manifests as if white silk wraps cinnabar; Life arising in the Lung manifests as if white silk wraps red; Life arising in the Liver manifests as if white silk wraps [metallic blue/green]; Life arising in the Spleen manifests as if white silk wraps Trichosanthes fruit; Life arising in the Kidney manifests as if white silk wraps purple. These are the external splendors generated by the Zang organs. (The character "wrap" is exquisite; true colors are rooted beneath the skin. Those deeply contained within the skin are correct colors. Those exposed from beneath the skin to the exterior are pathological or fatal colors. Those that are thin, scattered, and merely floating on the surface are wandering Qi, not rooted in the Zang organs, and irrelevant to auspiciousness or inauspiciousness; they are simply called dirt. Quoted from Suwen.)

Five colors possess both luster and substance. Luster refers to brightness; substance refers to moistness. Luster is formless, belongs to Yang, and governs Qi; substance has form, belongs to Yin, and governs Blood. When both Qi and Blood are exhausted, the color becomes deep and dull, which corresponds to the five conditions mentioned in the classic: withered grass, zhi shi fruit, leaking roof dust, clotted blood, and dry bone. When Qi and Blood still exist, the color is bright and moist, corresponding to the five conditions: kingfisher feather, rooster comb, crab belly, pig fat, and crow feather. However, although these five colors indicate potential for life, they ultimately belong to the hyperactivity of a single organ, representing pathology rather than balance. In a healthy person with harmonious Zang organs, the color of any single organ will only manifest externally when that organ is at its peak. This external manifestation is derived from Stomach Qi and emerges between the skin and hair. Since Stomach Qi is yellow and skin/hair is white, it is described as "like white silk wrapping." "Like white silk wrapping" implies a hazy luster; although forms are visible, they are not dazzlingly bright. This is because internally, Qi and Blood are harmonious, Yin and Yang do not conflict, and the Zang organs have no excessive dominance. If this is not the case, and the Zang organs decline, the previously hazy color changes to isolated hyperactivity; the previously bright and moist color changes to deep turbidity; the previously moist color changes to withered desiccation. Eventually, deep turbidity and withered desiccation combine to cause premature death, where both luster and substance are absent, and Yin-Yang and Qi-Blood are severed. What else is there to wait for but death?

Note: The meaning of this chapter differs slightly from the previous one. The previous chapter referred to evil colors arising from specific body parts; this chapter refers to the natural base color of the entire face. Evil colors arise from other areas, sized like elm seeds; regardless of green, yellow, red, white, or black, they all indicate specific diseases and are inauspicious. Base colors are uniformly full across the face without specific localization, and auspiciousness or inauspiciousness is determined solely by whether the color is withered or moist. The former focuses on location; the latter focuses on color.