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(Ben Jing, Lower Grade)
[Flavor and Property] Bitter, cold, toxic.
[Indications] Mainly treats pathogenic factors, hot pathogens, scabies with itching, malignant sores, hemorrhoids, and removes white intestinal parasites (Bai Chong).
[Verification] It is said: It grows in the river valleys of Huainan, as well as in Yuanju. Currently, it is abundant in various prefectures east of Jiangdong and Bian, as well as in Jiankang and Sanfu areas. The stem resembles that of She Du Cao (Snake Poison Herb), the leaves are dense and large, deep green. It flowers in June and fruits in August. Those with black fruit and white roots are of the best quality; those with black roots are secondary. If exposed to dampness, it is prone to rotting.
[Interpretation] It is said: Ye Lang Ya (Wild Wolf's Tooth) is named for its shape. It excels at driving away gluttonous things, making their intestines straight; its medicinal use is similar to this characteristic. Its nature is cold, flavor bitter, and it is toxic. It drives away pathogenic heat, using toxicity to attack toxicity, acting swiftly like a shadow following a form. Generally, wind entering leads to the formation of worms, and heat damages the body orifices. This occurs due to excessive drinking and overeating, leading to intestinal abscesses, hemorrhoids, genital erosion, and malignant sores. Internal administration often yields miraculous results, while external washing makes it easier to cleanse and remove the pathogen.

(Ben Jing, Lower Grade)
[Flavor and Property] Pungent, cold, non-toxic.
[Indications] Mainly treats Fu Shi (latent corpse disease/ghost diseases), venomous bites, and kills three types of parasites.
[Verification] It is said: Both tin and lead can be made into powder. Tin powder is bright and clean without a bluish tint, suitable only for women's facial decoration, indistinguishable from skin texture. However, tin is considered the "thief" among the five metals, not used in medicine, and alchemists do not adopt it. Lead powder has a bluish tint; this is the primordial Qi, the pure liquid of the five metals, excellent for medicinal use. Alchemists use it when refining and making cabinets, refusing to use anything else. According to Mozi: Yu the Great created powder. Zhang Hua in *Bowuzhi* stated: King Zhou of Shang burned lead and tin to make powder. Thus, the origin of powder is ancient. Currently, Jinling, Hangzhou, Shaozhou, and Chenzhou all manufacture it. The method is as follows: Take 100 jin of lead, melt it, shave it into thin slices, roll them into tubes, place them inside a wooden zeng (steamer). Place one bottle of vinegar under the zeng and one inside the zeng. Seal the exterior with salt mud and paper. Inside a wind furnace, place four liang of charcoal fire. When the fire burns out, add charcoal. Nourish for seven days, open the zeng to sweep out the powder, reseal and nourish again until the reaction is complete. The unreacted residue, when roasted, becomes Huang Dan (Red Lead). The dregs are Miduoseng (Litharge). *Mengchun Yudong Lu* records: Songyang produces lead, and residents mostly make Hu Fen (Lead Carbonate Powder). The method is: Suspend lead blocks inside a wine jar, seal for forty-nine days. Upon opening, it has transformed into powder. However, lead vapor is toxic; workers often use fatty pork, dog meat, and fermented grain mash to suppress the toxicity. Those who suffer poisoning often become emaciated and yellow, suffering from paralysis and spasms until death. These are clever craftsmen constantly innovating for quick transformation and profit. *Xianggan Zhi* records: Shao powder is not white enough; steaming it with Radish seeds makes it white.
[Interpretation] It is said: Irrigating the lees and vinegar of metal-grain crops, frying black lead to create powder, transforming it into Western White Gold, seeking gold within water. Further relying on tripods and jars for brewing and storage, steaming and floating, dissolving hardness into fragility, breaking large chunks into fine dust. When burned, the powder returns to lead. Separating and rejoining, joining and separating, this precisely demonstrates the immutable nature of the Metal element undergoing change, utilizing numbers to transform. All these are the result of human effort, not natural production. In this way, inheriting the golden nature of containment and peace,
Huang Lian (Coptis Rhizome) rising with flame creates bitterness, possessing the transformative command of Tai Yang Cold Water. Moreover, Metal becomes firm here, reaching up to the highest heavens, penetrating down to the deepest abysses, circulating internally through the Five Viscera, and spreading externally through the skin and interstices. For treating body heat, skin pain causing oozing sores, and burning of hair, skin, and epidermis related to the Lung-Metal organ system, Huang Lian Fen (Coptis Powder) is the primary treatment. Relying on the fierce striking to seize clear and肃 (solemn/clear) qi, placing heat and vexation in a cool ground.