Six White and Eight White Together

Six White's metal element places it in a productive relationship with the earth stars, Two Black, Five Yellow and Eight White, since earth produces metal in the Five Phase generative cycle, though the reading differs sharply depending on which earth star is involved: a pairing with the generally inauspicious Two Black or Five Yellow is read cautiously even though the elemental relationship is technically productive, while a pairing with Eight White, the recent period's prosperity star, is read as one of the more favourable combinations available in a contemporary chart.

This distinction, that a productive elemental relationship does not automatically mean a favourable combined reading once each star's own separate reputation is factored in, is one of the clearer illustrations of how Xuan Kong practice layers the Five Phase relationships between elements on top of, rather than in place of, each individual star's own established character.