"Qilin Demon Nie Feng is a formidable enemy," Qing Yu muttered to himself silently.
The Qilin Demon from the anime version isn't like the one from the TV series, which started off strong but ended up with a tiger's head and a snake's tail.
There's a line in the original text that goes like this, "When the dragon's reign is at an end, a demon shall emerge; with the appearance of the Qilin Demon, calamity shall extend across the divine land."
The Qilin Demon mentioned here is the demon among demons, a calamity that could extend across the divine land. Xiong Ba, who ultimately transformed into a demon in the TV series, was portrayed as the Qilin Demon.
It was not until the final battle against Lian Chengzhi in the later stages that Nie Feng, with great determination and willpower, went into retreat in Lingyun Cave and successfully tamed the Demon Heart.