Gu Qingfeng listened from the side and caught the gist of it. He was surprised to learn that Si Wei's father was actually the governor of Wutong Prefecture - the highest official position in the entire prefecture!
However, he didn't care about any of that. Right now, he only cared about one thing: were the members of the Blood Demon Cult considered humans or demons?
If they practiced demon magic and tried to transform themselves into demons, did they succeed or not?
If they had become demons, then he could solo raid the Blood Demon Cult dungeon by himself!
"Um... may I interrupt?"
Gu Qingfeng suddenly spoke up, drawing everyone's attention.
"I'd like to know if the Blood Demon Cult members are humans or demons?"
The guard captain frowned. "Why do you ask?"
"Dealing with demons and monsters is my specialty, so I need to confirm."
"Your specialty?"
"Indeed. Let me formally introduce myself - I, Gu Qingfeng, am a trainee exorcist of the Demon Suppression Bureau in Wutong Prefecture!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the room fell silent.
The guard captain looked at Gu Qingfeng with an expression that said "are you kidding me?"
Only Si Wei responded cheerfully with childlike innocence: "That's wonderful, Young Master Gu! I didn't expect you to be from the Demon Suppression Bureau. I've heard that exorcists from the Bureau are experts at slaying demons and monsters. Surely you must have a way to deal with the White Bone Master outside?"
"Young Miss, he's just a trainee exorcist, the lowest rank possible, and his cultivation is only at the Qi Gathering Realm. What could he possibly do?"
"Oh, is that so? Then Young Master Gu, you'd better not go outside. Uncle Li and the others will protect you," Si Wei said disappointedly.
Gu Qingfeng couldn't be bothered to argue with them.
"Never mind all that, I just want to know if the White Bone Master is human or demon?"
"The Blood Demon Cult members are basically half-human, half-demon. Although they practice demon magic and transplant demon organs, becoming a demon from a human isn't that easy. After all, humans and demons are different species, so they're generally called half-demons."
"Half-demons?" Gu Qingfeng pondered thoughtfully.
By now, intense fighting sounds could be heard outside the mountain temple, indicating that Elder Xing had engaged the White Bone Master in combat.
"System, can these half-demons hurt me?" Gu Qingfeng asked internally.
The system's cold voice echoed in his mind.
"This system is called 'Grow Stronger When Attacked by Demons,' not 'Grow Stronger When Attacked by Half-demons,' understand?"
Damn it!
Useless system!
Gu Qingfeng cursed inwardly while his heart sank. If the system wouldn't work, and if Elder Xing couldn't defeat the White Bone Master, wouldn't he be doomed along with everyone else?
What should he do?
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Suddenly, violent pounding on the door interrupted Gu Qingfeng's thoughts.
Everyone looked at the shaking door frame with grave expressions.
The next moment.
Boom!
The temple door was blasted open.
They saw over a hundred humanoid creatures with tattered clothes and grotesque faces with fangs.
The sound of hundreds of footsteps they had heard earlier came from these humanoid creatures.
Gu Qingfeng smiled when he saw these creatures.
He was familiar with these things! They looked just like little corpse demons - they must be zombies created by the White Bone Master.
While he couldn't handle the White Bone Master himself, dealing with these zombies would be a piece of cake. Looks like there might be a chance to break through.
Roar!!!
The hundred-plus zombies howled in unison, rushing to enter the mountain temple.
The guard captain reacted quickly, immediately shouting: "Protect the Young Miss!"
He flashed to the doorway, his body surging with True Qi, raised his long sword, and fiercely slashed at the nearest zombie.
The zombie was sent flying by the sharp blade light but wasn't seriously injured. It just shook itself and stood back up.
The guard captain's face changed drastically: "Bronze Armored Zombie!"
Zombies were classified as ordinary zombies, Iron Armored Zombies, Bronze Armored Zombies, Silver Armored Zombies, and Golden Armored Zombies.
Bronze Armored Zombies were on par with warriors in the True Qi Realm.
Fortunately, most of these zombies were Iron Armored Zombies, with only a few Bronze Armored Zombies. Combined with the narrow entrance and the zombies' lack of intelligence to tear down walls or climb through windows, the guard captain could hold the doorway alone for a short while.
Though one or two Iron Armored Zombies would occasionally slip through, the other four guards weren't pushovers either. All being at the Internal Qi Realm, they could easily handle the occasional Iron Armored Zombie.
The situation reached a stalemate.
The zombies wanted to charge in but were blocked by the guards, while the guards wanted to break out but were blocked by the zombies.
Of course, the key to this battle's outcome wasn't with them, but with Elder Xing and the White Bone Master fighting outside.
Gu Qingfeng took the opportunity to peek at their battle.
He saw Elder Xing locked in combat with a black-robed man whose face couldn't be seen clearly.
The more he watched, the more shocked he became. Warriors at the Tough Qi Realm were truly in a different league from him. The two men fought like human-shaped mechas, with each clash creating shockwaves that easily toppled swaths of trees in the surrounding forest.
A casual gust of wind from their battle could tear up three feet of earth.
At this level of combat, even with his bronze skin and iron bones, Gu Qingfeng couldn't withstand a single hit.
"Die!!!"
Elder Xing suddenly roared, veins bulging on his face, muscles rippling. With a ripping sound!
Elder Xing's clothes instantly shredded to pieces - he had burst out of his clothing!
Revealing a body covered in muscles that resembled gnarled old tree roots, along with countless scars - he looked incredibly fierce!
Elder Xing charged at the White Bone Master with a roar, his body wrapped in violent Tough Qi.
"You want to fight to the death? With your ability?" The White Bone Master sneered, his body surging with Tough Qi, surprisingly meeting Elder Xing head-on instead of dodging.
Boom!
The two human-shaped energy masses collided violently, producing an earth-shattering sound!
After a brief deadlock, there was a loud bang!
One figure was sent flying backward, plowing a trench dozens of meters long in the ground like a plow, finally stopping after crashing through countless huge trees.
The other figure stood unmoved at the original spot, completely unharmed.
"Elder Xing!"
Si Wei cried out in shock, as if suddenly losing her pillar of support.
The figure that had been sent flying was Elder Xing. His face was now pale, blood spurting from his mouth, with countless broken bones throughout his body.
He looked at the White Bone Master in shock: "Im... impossible!"
The White Bone Master sneered with contempt: "What's impossible?"
Though the White Bone Master was uninjured, his black robe had been completely shredded by the battle's shockwaves.
Revealing a dark silver, metallic-looking body.
Seeing this, Elder Xing's face changed drastically: "You... you actually turned yourself into a Silver Armored Zombie!"
The White Bone Master laughed: "You have some eye for detail. Now you understand why your full-power attack couldn't harm me at all?
This is the power of zombies!
What perfect creatures they are - impervious to weapons, possessing immense strength, needing only fresh blood to exist eternally! Hehehe..."
This completely crushed Elder Xing's hope. He had thought that since they were both Tough Qi Realm warriors, even if he couldn't win, going all out would at least result in mutual damage, but now...
"Quickly, take the Young Miss and flee!" Elder Xing shouted anxiously.
"Hehehe, none of you will escape!"
The guard captain and others wanted to run, but they were surrounded by zombies with no way out.
Seeing Elder Xing's defeat, they all fell into despair. Si Wei, being a weak woman, saw Elder Xing injured and everyone facing death. Her beautiful eyes turned red, on the verge of tears.
Just as everyone was despairing, Gu Qingfeng smiled. He smiled very happily.
"System, zombies count as demons and monsters, right?" Gu Qingfeng asked in his mind.
"Yes." The system coldly replied with one word.
Gu Qingfeng smiled even more broadly.
When Elder Xing was defeated, he had thought he was done for, since his system was ineffective against half-demons. But who knew this White Bone Master would be such a madman, actually turning himself into a zombie? A pure demon!
Hehehe...
"Today... it seems I shall reveal my true power!" Gu Qingfeng muttered.