Spiritual Beasts

"So then Demons in this world are kind of like vampires," said Jong, "creatures that were once men, or Spiritual Beasts, or well, conventional forms of life that became…something else, and can convert others in turn." 

"Although, if there really was a Demonic Beast here, the chaotic energy wouldn't be this spread out," Xiao Min, "my guess is there is an Ascended Beast which has started the process of becoming a Demonic Beast. 

If that is the case however, I have to wonder why the government official back there doesn't understand the signs."