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Unblock meridians, dispel wind and cold.
Treats cold pain in the heart and abdomen, bi-syndrome caused by wind-cold-dampness, and Yin abscesses adhering to bones (Fugu Yinju). For any hidden pain in the muscles and bones, needle with fire needles. The fire energy reaches directly to the site of pain, yielding very effective results. (Li Shizhen said: To make the Divine Needle Fire, take peach branches growing eastward on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, carve them into wooden needles the size of a chicken egg, five or six cun long, and dry them. When using, place three to five layers of cotton paper on the affected area, dip the needle in sesame oil, ignite it, extinguish the flame, and prick the area while hot.)

Thunder-Fire Divine Needle. (Formula: Two liang of aged mugwort leaf powder; one qian each of frankincense (Ruxiang), myrrh (Moyao), pangolin scales (Chuanshanjia), sulfur (Liuhuang), aconite root lateralis preparata (Caowutou), aconitum carmichaelii deoxyaconitine root preparata (Chuanwutou), and peach tree bark powder; five fen of musk (Shexiang). Grind these herbs into fine powder and mix with mugwort. Roll tightly into strips the thickness of a finger and three to four cun long using thick paper, store in a bottle, and bury underground for seven days. Take out, light one end over a lamp, extinguish the flame, place ten layers of paper between the needle and the skin, and prick the affected area while hot. The heat penetrates directly, making the effect even faster. Cold water is contraindicated during use.)

Unblock meridians, dispel wind.
Treats tendon stiffness caused by wind-cold, spasmodic牵引 leading to bi-pain, or paralysis with numbness. Withdraw the needle quickly after insertion; immediately press the acupoint hole to stop pain; if not pressed, pain worsens. For conditions involving masses, accumulations, and cold diseases, withdraw the needle slowly and rotate it to discharge turbid pathogenic factors. For back carbuncles (Yongju Fabei) where pus exists but has no head, needle to allow pus to drain; do not press the hole.
When using fire needles, inserting too deeply damages meridians and collaterals, while inserting too shallowly fails to eliminate disease. The key lies in judging the depth appropriately. Fever and aversion to cold after needling indicate that the treatment has struck the disease (Zhongbing). This method is contraindicated on the face, during summer months, and when damp-heat affects the lower limbs. (Li Shizhen said: The *Suwen* states: If the disease is in the tendons, regulate the tendons by burning needles and seizing the acupuncture points below, and for those with tendon stiffness... If the disease is in the bones, regulate the bones by quenching needles and applying medicinal moxibustion/warming. Furthermore, the *Lingshu Jing* describes various bi-pains arising from the twelve tendon meridians, stating that treatment involves burning needles and seizing acupuncture points, taking improvement as the limit, and using the painful point as the shu point. It also states: Diseases of the tendon meridians, when cold, cause reverse bending and tendon stiffness; when hot, they cause flaccidity and inability to contract, or impotence and inability to use. Quenching/acupuncture is for cold-induced stiffness; flaccidity should not be treated with burning needles. Thus, burning needles are designed for cold-induced tendon stiffness, using heat to treat cold, which is the correct method. Later generations used fire needles for masses, borrowing fire energy to dispel cold-dampness and discharge turbidity. Or used for carbuncles, employing the contrary method to drain toxins. However, ignorant people using it for cold damage and febrile diseases is incorrect. Zhang Zhongjing said: In Taiyang cold damage, adding warm needles will surely cause palpitations/fright; in those with weak Ying Qi, adding burning needles causes blood flow stagnation, worsening fever and irritability. After purgative therapy for Taiyang disease leads to epigastric fullness, with both exterior and interior deficient, and Yin and Yang exhausted, adding burning needles again causes chest vexation, bluish-yellow complexion, and moist skin—these are difficult to treat. These are all cases where practitioners, not understanding the principles set by ancient sages, misuse needles causing harm. Additionally, for liver deficiency causing dim vision and excessive tearing, or wind-red eyes and pterygium formation, stubborn purulent disease, subsequent white membrane blindness, or five viscera deficiency labor with wind-heat rushing upward to the eyes causing pterygium, warming and cauterizing methods are suitable. This is because Qi and Blood flow freely when warm and stagnate when cold. The method uses a flat-headed needle, sized like a pore, heated red, and gently cauterized at the center of the pterygium. After cauterization breaks the membrane, apply depurating eye medicine.)

Fire Needle. Known as Burning Needle (Fan Zhen) or Quenching Needle (Cui Zhen) in the *Suwen*; Burning Needle (Shao Zhen) by Zhang Zhongjing; Warming Needle (Wei Zhen) in Sichuan/Shu regions. (Method: Fill a cup with sesame oil, light seven reed grass wicks. Frequently coat the needle with sesame oil and burn it over the lamp until thoroughly red before use. If not red or cold, it cannot cure disease and may harm the person. Needles made of iron from fire tongs are best. Mark acupoints with ink; deviation renders it ineffective.)