“Fire is incompatible with primordial qi” is a key argument in Li Gao's theory of spleen and stomach injury from the Earth-replenishing School in traditional Chinese medicine(TCM).Throughout history，various physicians have interpreted this concept，often in a linear manner，which has limited its clinical significance and value.Inspired by the energy metabolism reprogramming and immune interactions during tumor development，this study examines the mechanisms of tumor metabolism and immune interactions，explores the similarities and correlations with “yin fire” and “primordial qi”，analyzes the complexity，dynamism，and systematic nature of both “yin fire” and “primordial qi”，as well as their nonlinear relationship by applying the principles of complex systems science.This study suggests that the argument “Fire is incompatible with primordial qi” encapsulates the pathological phenomenon that emerges from the nonlinear interactions between yin fire and primordial qi as a complex system，and also serves as a “core pathological model” for understanding the nonlinear relationship between energy metabolism and the immune system in TCM.