Chapter Thirty-Five: Medicine and Poison Are of the Same Origin

  Identifying medicinal herbs is a breeze for Mo Wen. Medicinal herbs and medicinal stones all belong to the five elements, and naturally each belongs to one of the five viscera. The simplest and most effective way to identify medicinal herbs is by "tasting", which was used by Shen Nong in ancient times. Medicinal herbs with different five elements have different tastes: those belonging to metal are sour and astringent, those belonging to wood are pungent and refreshing, those belonging to water are bitter, those belonging to fire are salty and numbing, and those belonging to earth usually have a sweet taste.

  However, these are only rough identification methods, and some medicinal herbs are exceptions. Moreover, this method is also very dangerous, because not all medicinal herbs can be tasted with the mouth. If you accidentally taste poisonous herbs like Aristolochia or Datura, you will immediately get poisoned and fall to the ground.

  Yu Lingong's explanation of herbal medicine was extremely detailed, with each herb taking about half a stick of incense to explain its properties, uses, and toxicity. Mo Wen listened very seriously, and only by concentrating hard could he barely remember everything. The others were also listening intently, but they couldn't remember because they had no prior knowledge of medicine. Yu Lingong didn't seem to mind, nor did she ask how much they remembered. People's innate abilities and comprehension are different, and teaching an art is only about guiding those with innate ability and comprehension. Even the best teacher can't teach a student without innate ability.

  The pharmacology of Chinese herbal medicine is actually very complex. Apart from the superficial five elements, each herb also has a latent five-element attribute. For example, Huanglian is fire within water and Fuling is water within earth. When preparing medicinal herbs, one must not only weigh the external five elements of various herbs but also consider their latent five elements. These two kinds of five-element attributes are very difficult to thoroughly distinguish.

  Fortunately, the external five elements of medicinal herbs play a major role. Ordinary medicine only needs to grasp the external five elements of medicinal herbs to cure diseases, and some minor hidden dangers can be ignored.

  As for the top-grade prescriptions that thoroughly eliminate irrelevant medicinal properties and only retain the medicinal properties necessary for treating illnesses, not only can they cure diseases, but also preserve the body's vital energy without causing damage. However, such prescriptions are too complicated, unless it is for a close relative or a benefactor, otherwise it is not worth spending time and effort to carefully select and prepare.

  In addition, no matter what kind of medicinal herb, it has a certain toxicity by itself. When using it, it must be neutralized and resolved. If not neutralized, it will cause great hidden harm to the human body. This toxicity caused by improper matching even exceeds that of the highly toxic plant Aconitum. The principle of using medicine to save lives or harm people is the same. It can save a person in an instant, but also kill a person without warning. Whether to kill or save, when to get sick and when to recover, all depend on the thought of the doctor's hand.

  Medicinal materials are not limited to plants, animal bones and feathers, even tortoise shells and insects can be used as medicine. The over 1,000 types of medicinal materials in the Eastern Palace can be roughly divided into four categories: plant-based, mineral-based, insect/avian-based, and animal scale/hide-based. When explaining these medicinal materials, Yu Linglong categorizes them accordingly. Many medicinal materials have similar properties, and when encountering such materials, Yu Linglong emphasizes their unique properties that cannot be replaced by other medicines.

  Because identifying medicinal herbs is extremely complicated, it's only a few dozen kinds in the morning, but everyone listened with great interest, and regardless of whether they remembered or not, at least Yuling would explain some strange diseases while explaining, so even if people couldn't remember the medicine, they didn't feel bored.

  At noon, everyone took a break to eat. Lao Wu's main job was as a cook, but he only occasionally came to deliver food. The lunch wasn't delivered by him. Mo asked quickly finished drinking the thin porridge and went back to his room to take out paper to recall and write down what Yuling had explained about medicinal herbs, which was extremely profound. Most of the content was not recorded in medical books, and writing it down would certainly be beneficial in the future.

  As I had previously come into contact with the medicinal herbs, it was not difficult to recall them. By noon, when I went to the Eastern Temple again, I had already recorded everything. The original words could not be remembered in full, but the properties of the medicines and their divine marrow were all included without exception.

  In the afternoon, it was still about explaining pharmacology and identifying drugs. Since there were more drugs to explain in the afternoon, after finishing class, Mo Wen didn't go to the cafeteria for dinner, but instead returned to his room with his writing kit to identify and record them at the Eastern Temple.

  "Old master, why didn't you go eat?" Lao Wu stood outside the hall, casting a sideways glance at the full hall of medicinal herbs.

  "I'll remember the uses of these medicinal herbs, Li Zhenren's lectures on pharmacology and usage are worlds apart from those folk doctors." Mo asked casually.

  "The head of the dining hall didn't accept our gold and asked me to return it," said Lao Wu.

  "You stay here, and if you have a chance to go out, buy some grain and vegetables back." Mo Wen said.

  "Alright. You're busy, I'll head back then. I've sent the food to your room." Lao Wu saw that Mo Xiang was focused on his studies and tactfully didn't disturb him again.

  Mo Wen nodded and closed his eyes again, recalling what Yu Linglong had said. Night fell, but he was still perplexed.

  "Don't ask how I'm here." Just as Mo Xian furrowed his brow in recollection, Ajiu's voice appeared outside the hall.

  "I'm recalling what Li Zhenren said earlier." Mo asked in response.

  "Did you memorize it all?" Ah Jiu stepped in.

  "There are still five that I don't remember." Mo Wen shook his head and said, the explanation time in the afternoon was longer than in the morning, and Yu Linglong's content was more, he didn't remember all of it.

  "What five?" Ah Jiu asked.

  "Zhu Ya Zao, Lei Gong Teng, Wu Ling Zhi, Hu Zhang, Zhu Ling." Mo Wen pointed to the five herbs on the shelf one by one.

  "Zhu Ya Zao, Mu Zhong Shui, qu Feng Ze, zhi Tan Ke, sha Jie Chong, yu Deng Xin Cao yi Bei Yin Feng Chao Duan Zhuang, da Du, san Ri Si, mu Fan Qing..." Ah Jiu recited the medicinal properties of these five herbs one by one like a treasured family heirloom.

  Mo Wen was stunned, Ah Jiu's words were more detailed than his memories, almost repeating Yu Linglong's original words, without any mistakes.

  "If you forget again, just tell me and I'll recite it for you." said A Jiu.

  Mo Wen heard and nodded in shock.

  "Have you found that our food has become much coarser in recent days?" Ah Jiu said, leaning against a house pillar.

  "Years of war have left the land barren, and now the Taoist priests on Mount Wu Xian only get two meals a day." Mo didn't ask as he walked towards the door, although he could see in the dark, it was still improper for an unmarried man and woman to be alone together.

  "Can we gather some silver coins to give them?" Ah Jiu followed him out.

  "They won't want it." Mo asked as he walked out of the temple and stood still. He didn't dare go back to his room, or else Ajiu would very likely follow him there.

  "Don't ask, what are you going to do after you come out of the mountain?" Ah Jiu asked.

  "My wife was abducted by the Hu people, I want to go find her. If I can find her, I will return to my hometown in Xiyang County." Mo asked thought for a moment before responding.

  "If you can't find it, where will you and Lao Wu go?" Ah Jiu asked.

  He didn't ask, and just stood there silently for a long time, then sighed and shook his head. Going home was what he wanted to do most, but he also knew that home was already gone. Xiyang County was now an uninhabited dead city.

  "After leaving the mountain, let's travel together. I'll accompany you to find Leng Zheng. If we can't find him, you and Old Five can follow me to Wú Míng Mountain. It's a quiet and elegant place where spiritual things are easy to find. We can practice alchemy and cultivate our energy in the mountains, and understand the truth." Ah Jiu said softly.

  "Thank you for your kind intentions, Ah Jiu, but finding my wife is something I must do myself. I don't want to trouble others with it, and besides, I have many trivial matters that are still unresolved, so I don't want to avoid the world in search of perfection." Mo Xun said with a bow.

  "You're just looking down on me because of my humble origins and don't deign to associate with someone like me?" Ah Jiu said, furrowing her brow.

  Mo Wen looked at Ajiu and sighed, then continued, "Ajiu, I understand your feelings towards me, but my heart is preoccupied with the uncertainty of my own life, as well as the whereabouts of my father's and the Wu couple's bodies, which are still submerged in the river. These thoughts have been weighing heavily on my mind, leaving no room for other considerations."

  "Qian Shuai is from the Yellow River Water Clan. After he comes out of the mountain, you can ask him to help find it in the water." Ah Jiu pointed westward to the West Wing.

  "I was just thinking of that." Mo Wen nodded and said.

  As the two were talking, an excited shout came from Liu Shaoying's room. Then, Liu Shaoying ran out of his room with a small jar in his arms, "I've managed to get all the pearls out."

  The other people heard the noise and all came out to watch, Mo Wen and Ajiu also rushed forward, Liu Shaoying reached into the urn again and pinched out all the beads.

  Everyone congratulated him on the scene, and Liu Shaoying tried several more times. After confirming that there was no mistake, he happily ran into the East Hall and placed the small altar on the north side of the wooden platform.

  The other six people saw Liu Shaoying succeed and returned to their rooms to practice. Mo didn't return to his room with the small urn, but instead simply ate some porridge and rice, sat down to recite scriptures, and after finishing the scripture, he practiced qigong. It wasn't until the hai hour that he held the small urn to practice, using the finger techniques that would be used later when practicing talismans and spells. There were still many days ahead, no need to rush excessively.

  Half a month later, seven people followed Yuling to identify medicinal herbs and familiarize themselves with their properties. Yuling taught casually, and the others learned casually. Three days ago, Sima Daochang arrived, but he did not come to the East Hall, instead staying in the West Hall without leaving his room. According to the old servant who went to deliver food to the West Hall, this Sima Daochang was less than 40 years old, had a scar on his face, and was taciturn, drinking all day.

  After explaining over a thousand kinds of medicines, Yulingong ordered the miscellaneous servants to set up seven medicine jars and a large amount of hay outside the East Hall. The seven people secretly rejoiced at this, thinking that they were going to learn how to refine elixirs.

  Unexpectedly, Yu Linglong waited for the medicine pot and hay to be ready, but did not practice how to refine the elixir. Instead, she raised an eyebrow and smiled lightly, "Each person chooses forty-nine kinds of medicinal materials from the thousand kinds in the temple, decocts them, and drinks them by themselves."

  Everyone who heard this was suddenly horrified, these medicines were mostly non-toxic, but mixed together they could easily become a deadly poison, unless one was well-versed in pharmacology and could thoroughly neutralize the properties of all forty-nine medicines, otherwise drinking it would be extremely dangerous.

  "May I ask, sir, if we win this game, can we get the alchemy treasure tripod?" Ah Jiu asked.

  Yu Ling smiled and shook her head, "Go ahead and select the herbs, you have one hour..."