Reborn as a Pig

Ordinary people who saw a scene like this would never connect the missing Yang Xiaoyan and her group with the pigs before them.

In Qin Luming's worldview, people turning into pigs, dogs, cats, crabs... changes like those were not impossible.

Or perhaps other animals could turn into people. That was possible too.

Qin Luming suspected that the most favored Big White Pig might be Yang Xiaoyan, while the other two competing for favor were the two female students.

Qin Luming had met them yesterday. Yang Xiaoyan's figure and looks were slightly inferior to Che Yun's, but better than the two female students'. The charm of a mature woman was even more beyond the reach of those two students... Che Yun had said that the two students were perks Brother Paris had prepared for his online followers. There was no reason for what Brother Paris kept for himself to be inferior to those perks.

As for whether Che Yun had originally been Brother Paris's food, or had gotten involved by accident, Qin Luming had no interest in analyzing or guessing.

Even after turning into Big White Pig, Yang Xiaoyan was still a sow with more outstanding looks? That was hard to say. Qin Luming was only going by instinct; he had no solid evidence to support his conclusion.

Should he test them and determine whether they had been transformed from people? Qin Luming had considered it, but did not act. For the moment, he did not intend to startle the pigs. It was still daylight, so he would observe them a while longer.

Qin Luming crouched in the grass, occasionally taking photos and enlarging them to see whether he could spot any telling details.

Unfortunately, Qin Luming did not follow the manufacturers' pace of replacing his phone whenever a new flagship model came out. The one in his hand was still an old model from over two years ago. If he had a phone with dual-view rear recording, an ultra-wide-angle lens, super macro, professional mode, predictive focus tracking, five-times optical zoom, ten-times hybrid zoom, and dozens of times digital zoom, it would have come in handy now.

As Qin Luming stared at the enlarged photos, unable to make out many details, the three slightly smaller black pigs stood up, swaying their fat bodies as they climbed toward the mountain wall with nimble steps.

Qin Luming remained crouched in the grass without moving. Big Black Pig had not attacked him last night, but it had clearly approached him with some purpose Qin Luming did not understand... Could it have wanted to turn him into a pig? Qin Luming silently counted himself lucky. He had no desire to become the protagonist of "Reborn as a Pig."

The three black pigs led the way. The three Big White Pigs lazily got to their feet as well, while Big Black Pig brought up the rear. Together, they climbed the mountain wall.

To this herd of pigs, the sixty-degree slope of the mountain wall was practically level ground. Their powerful limbs drove their bodies upward in heaving motions, rings of fat trembling like segmented worms as they swiftly climbed to the top.

Qin Luming glanced toward the front of the valley and did not continue investigating. After all, even a hurried search around the dam might not uncover anything. Searching for the whereabouts of Yang Xiaoyan's group, however, seemed to have yielded a clue.

Out of humanitarian concern, Qin Luming decided to first confirm whether these pigs had been transformed from Yang Xiaoyan and her group.

He followed the herd from a distance. With a few swift leaps and bounds, he caught up with their pace, maintaining a distance that would not alert them.

He had already witnessed Big Black Pig's running speed last night. They were not moving at full speed right now, but they still carried the momentum of a gale sweeping through the forest.

As he ran, Qin Luming became increasingly certain that this herd's destination was the mountaintop where he had set up camp!

The herd paused where Qin Luming had cut off the giant snake's head. Big Black Pig rooted its snout against the ground, then continued running without lingering.

Qin Luming had cautiously felt his way here before, taking a long time. Now, running behind the herd, he quickly neared the mountaintop.

He did not run straight over to confront the herd. From afar, he saw Che Yun wandering beside his tent, and Che Yun had spotted the pigs charging toward her!

Che Yun was still constantly making calls, sending messages, reporting the situation to online friends in her outdoor group, and looking up news reports about missing outdoor explorers. How could she have imagined that, in this desolate wilderness, a herd of enormous pigs led by a mountain-sized Big Black Pig would suddenly charge at her?

"Ah!" Che Yun's hand trembled, and her phone fell to the ground. She did not bother picking it up and rushed toward Qin Luming's tent.

Qin Luming's tent was closer to her, and one look was enough to tell that it was sturdy enough to withstand a typhoon. In comparison, the tent at her own campsite looked completely unsafe.

But Che Yun slowed down. A white pig darted over with incredible speed, knocking her aside before using its massive body to block the entrance to the tent.

The other pigs spread out as well, surrounding Che Yun before she could get back up.

Qin Luming approached while observing them. Judging from this herd's behavior and coordinated division of labor, they were nothing like ordinary domestic pigs. That also made Qin Luming's guess seem more plausible... These pigs were actually Che Yun's camping companions—pigs for teammates in every sense of the phrase.

Pig teammates usually only held their companions back unintentionally and would not deliberately target them. Yet the pigs before him seemed to be coming specifically for Che Yun.

The white pig blocking the tent struck first again, leading the other pigs as they closed in. Che Yun stared at the pig heads inches away from her and was so terrified she nearly cried.

Who could have imagined that a long-awaited outdoor camping trip would turn out like this? Her companions had gone missing, and even the passerby who had gone looking for them had vanished without a trace. She had been left alone on the mountaintop, waiting for news, and now a herd of pigs had suddenly rushed out, seemingly intending to do something to her?

Pigs were usually regarded as crude, stupid creatures beneath people's notice. Now that such massive beasts had surrounded her, tension welled up inside Che Yun, though she did not feel the same fear she would have faced with other ferocious animals.

"Help... Oh my God, get away! You stupid pigs!" Che Yun had not realized what the pigs intended. She only felt that they were far too large. Although they were clean and lacked the stench of filth people associated with pigs, Che Yun still could not help raising a hand to cover her nose.

At that moment, the other two white pigs leaped up and clamped their jaws onto Che Yun's top, knocking her to the ground before dragging her forward.

"Help! Help!" Only then did Che Yun panic, realizing the seriousness of the situation. Where were these pigs planning to drag her?

Big Black Pig excitedly rooted at the ground, preparing to take over, when a figure suddenly dashed over with astonishing speed.

Qin Luming rushed in front of the two white pigs and swung his entrenching shovel, smashing it fiercely into both their heads. The refined steel blade carried the explosive force of Qin Luming's left hand. The two pigs let out miserable squeals, blood pouring from their mouths as they immediately released Che Yun. Qin Luming casually grabbed Che Yun, sprinted away, and in an instant reached his tent, tossing her inside.

When Qin Luming saw Che Yun roll once and then lie motionless, he knew she was not dead—she had merely fainted. He finally let out a long breath. As long as there were no witnesses, he did not mind testing his skills.

At last, he directly faced the herd. Other than Big Black Pig, every pig wore a savage, resentful expression.

That expression... was extremely human. Qin Luming did not feel as though he were facing wild beasts, but rather people hidden beneath pig faces and pigskin.

Tiger's ghosts... Qin Luming thought of those creatures. Legend had it that people eaten by tigers became tiger's ghosts, doing everything they could to lead others to the tiger to be eaten. They would even disregard the familial bonds they had in life, targeting their own parents, wives, and children.

Qin Luming became even more certain that this herd of pigs was Yang Xiaoyan's group. They had become pigs, and knowing that Che Yun—and perhaps Qin Luming, whom they had only just met—was at the campsite, they wanted to turn Che Yun and Qin Luming into the same thing as them.