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[Maintaining Indications] Treats mental confusion and obstruction, forgetfulness, and excessive desire to sleep. Take the flowers, shade-dry for one hundred days, grind into powder, and take one cun bi (a square-inch measure) with water at dusk. Then lie down and contemplate matters you wish to resolve; you will awaken from sleep with clarity (recorded by Su Song).

(Recorded in the Lower Grade of *Shennong Bencao Jing*)

[Etymology] Li Shizhen said: Judging by its name, one can know it is toxic.

[Collection and Explanation] *Bielu* states: Yelangdu grows in the valleys of Qinting and Fenggao. The roots are harvested in February and August and shade-dried. Those that are aged and sink in water are of good quality.
Tao Hongjing said: It is also produced in Dangchang. It is said to grow only on a few acres, and pit vipers eat its roots, making it rare. Some use those from Mount Tai. Currently, those from Hanzhong and Jianping are used. It is claimed to share the same root as Fangkui, but Yelangdu sinks in water while Fangkui floats. It is rarely used by the common people, being an important medicine for treating abdominal disorders.
Zhen Quan said: It is now produced in Qinzhou and Chengzhou. Qinting was originally located on the border of these two prefectures. The climate in Qinlong is cold, and there were originally no pit vipers. This herb is completely different in category from Fangkui and has a different growing area. There is no record of it in Taishan or Hanzhong; thus, Tao's statement is erroneous.
Su Song said: It is also found in various prefectures in Shaanxi, as well as Liao Prefecture and Shizhou. Its appearance matches the description by Ma Zhi.
Li Shizhen said: Yelangdu is produced in the regions of Qin and Jin. Nowadays, people often substitute it with Caoru, which is a mistake. [Note: Text implies confusion with another plant].

[Aroma and Flavor] Pungent, neutral, highly toxic.
Zhen Quan said: Bitter, pungent, toxic.
Xu Zhicai said: Soybean acts as its guide drug; it should be stir-fried with vinegar. It is incompatible with Maijujiang and fears Zhansi and Mituoseng.

[Maintaining Indications] Treats coughing and rebellious qi rising upward; breaks up food stagnation and accumulations; treats edema caused by cold and heat; malignant sores, scrofula, ulcerative lesions, ghost essence, gu poison; kills flying birds and running beasts (*Shennong Bencao Jing*). Eliminates hypochondriac masses and癖疾 (*Bielu*).
Treats phlegm-fluid retention and mass formations; also kills rats (Zhen Quan). Mixes Yelangdu with Yege and inserts them into the ear to treat deafness (*Baopuzi*).

[Attached Formulas] Four old formulas, six new formulas.

Heart and abdomen connected pain with distension: Use 2 liang of Yelangdu and 0.5 liang of Fuzi. Pound and sieve, make pills the size of wutong seeds. Take one pill on the first day, two on the second, three on the third, then stop; then restart from one pill up to three pills again, until cured. (*Zhouhou Beiji Fang*)

Nine types of heart pain: 1. Worm, 2. Borer, 3. Wind, 4. Palpitation, 5. Food, 6. Drink, 7. Cold, 8. Heat, 9. Qi. Also treats chronic accumulated cold flowing into the heart and chest, as well as conditions resulting from falling from horses or carts, blood stasis, and evil influences: Jiutong Wan (Nine-Pain Pill): Use Yelangdu (roasted until fragrant), Wuzhuyu (soaked in hot water), Badou (remove heart, stir-fry to extract frost), Ganjiang (processed), Renshen each 1 liang, and Fuzi (soaked, peel removed) 3 liang. Grind into powder, refine honey to make pills the size of wutong seeds. Take one pill with warm wine on an empty stomach. (*Qianjin Fang*)

Food stagnation: Use 3 liang of Yelangdu, 1 liang of Fuzi, 3 liang of Xuanjinhua. Grind into powder, make pills the size of wutong seeds with honey. Take three pills before meals with plain boiled water, three times a day. (*Zhouhou Beiji Fang*)

Qi knot in both hypochondria: Same formula as for cold pain in the abdomen.

All kinds of parasitic worm diseases: Pound Yelangdu into powder. Take 1 qian per dose. Dissolve a piece of maltose the size of a soap pod and a little rock sugar in water. Take on an empty stomach before sleep; worms will be discharged the next morning. (*Jixiao Fang*)

[Text fragment missing symptom description] Apply mixed with pig fat or horse fat to the affected area. Do not cover your head with a blanket while sleeping, lest the medicinal vapor damage the face. This is a formula passed down by the Pan family of Weiyang. (*Linshi Jingyan Fang*)

[Text fragment missing symptom description] In a clay vessel, dissolve with saliva into powder. Soak the medicine in clear oil, one cun high. After three days, when the medicine sinks and the oil clears, dip into the oil at night when no lamp light is visible, apply to the sore, and inhale the fumes from the medicine cup to achieve effect. (*Yonglei Fang*)

Chronic dry tinea

Malignant wind sores: Equal parts Yelangdu and Qinjiao. Grind into powder. Take one cun bi per dose with warm wine, once or twice a day. (*Qianjin Fang*)