Python molurus
Compare how the "Shanhaijing" description of the "ba"-snake's sympathetic magic is interpreted as eating the snake (Birrell "take a dose of this snake" and Schiffeler "swallow its flesh") or eating the undigested elephant bones (Read "take these bones as medicine"). This materia medica lists uses for python bile, flesh, fat, teeth, and oil. The "Bencao Gangmu" says pythons can reach lengths of 50–60 "chi" (about 16–20 meters), but "Python molurus" grow up to 5.8 meters and "Python reticulatus" 9.2 meters.