A Penguin Like Any Other

"In the darkest reaches of the universe, one could glimpse a bright white light, wandering aimlessly but with an unchanging glow.

Eyes appeared amidst the space, attentively observing the small light. These eyes were of an intense red, akin to those of a predator.

They gleamed with a scarlet hue as massive hands, each equipped with four arms, akin to those of a colossal beast, emerged. At the tips of these arms, long and sharp claws protruded. Beautiful scales of a brilliant red adorned their skin, shimmering amidst the space's darkness.

The creature's hands and arms joined together to grasp the small light, which began to shine with such intensity that the surrounding dark space seemed insignificant in comparison. However, with time, the light ceased to shine. In a matter of seconds, the once white light changed to a reddish hue and ultimately disappeared completely from space.

The eyes of the divine being or creature, possessing the ability to see all, vanished along with the light. Now, in space, nothing remained but darkness."

"Ekk-Ekk"

Chirping sounds echoed from the depths of a room; within a cage, a small animal could be seen. It had the shape of a penguin, but the part that used to be dark now bore a bluish tone. Its bright, clear, blue eyes were penetrating.

Li Wei opened his eyes in alarm and looked around, unable to spot anything familiar. He had woken up frightened and filled with fear. The last thing he remembered was being betrayed by his best friend, Ye Chen. He also recalled that Ye Chen couldn't stop repeating:

"Thanks to this system, I will become the most powerful of all. I will be the supreme being. This system is the best. I am the protagonist, the one and only. You are just cannon fodder for my advancement."

"I am the protagonist, I am the protagonist..."

"His laughter was repulsive, and with the very words he kept repeating, his eyes ceased towards death.

"As he looked around, Li Wei noticed furniture and paintings that seemed valuable. Painted chairs appeared to be carved by an artist who could be considered decent where he came from.

He could see a luxurious atmosphere everywhere he looked, but that didn't discomfort him. Looking closer at his surroundings, he realized everything was too large, and there were bars that prevented him from leaving.

"What the hell?"

He tried to move, but it was complicated; his movements were slow and seemed clumsy. Turning his body, he finally managed to look in another direction, where the same luxurious environment awaited. When he saw a small mirror, he noticed something strange: an animal he didn't recognize. Feeling curious, he approached, and the same animal drew near, as if imitating his movements.

This left Li Wei with an awkward smile of disbelief.

"Please, tell me it's not true."

Trying to reject reality, Li Wei placed his hand, now a flipper, on his face, but when he saw that his movements were exact, he dropped to the ground.

"I, Li Wei, the most handsome man, the downfall of married men, the playboy who never touched a woman, have I been reduced to a mere animal?"

"Desperation and signs of rejection could be seen on his face."

"Damn Yen Chen, or was it Ye Chen? Tch, it doesn't matter, if I have the chance, I'll cut off those balls and feed them to the pigs, and your flesh will be devoured by stray dogs."

His face showed signs of anger and resentment that seemed directed towards Ye Chen, who many considered Li Wei's best friend.

"Surely you just wanted to sleep with Li Xiang."

"You damn idiot, I already told you I had no relationship with her."

"Although Li Wei was unaware of it, everyone in the other realm noticed how they treated each other. They were like a lovey-dovey couple who never wanted to be apart, like teenagers who couldn't stop expressing their love.

He acted this way with her because he had grown accustomed to it over time, and since she treated him like that, he thought it was normal, especially since Li Xiang didn't allow him to get close to other women.

He had little interest in the opposite gender, having focused too much on cultivation and reading. He didn't notice the opposite sex.

He was considered the most handsome man, and often his friends forced him to be with girls since he thought Li Xiang wouldn't like it, and he would just watch without speaking, making the situation awkward. Many people began to see him as a playboy, but in reality, he only went out because his friends "forced" him, although they really lured him with promises of cultivation techniques.

He wasn't foolish, but he also believed that his friends would enjoy his presence, and he wanted to spend time with them, which is why he went out."

"Where am I?" His gaze settled around the room, and he noticed a massive white wooden door.

He tried to approach the bars, and upon touching them, they emitted a light blue energy.

"Tch, spiritual energy, but it's not high-level, not even medium-level; I could escape from here even as a beginner."

"They are underestimating me because I don't have cultivation; they think I'm just a simple animal they can keep locked up, and that gives me a total advantage."

"I could get out of here, but I don't know anything about the outside, so I would have to gather information about where I am."

While he was contemplating, the door opened, and a tall man entered. He had muscles everywhere that looked abnormal; he had muscles on top of muscles, muscles where they were supposed to be rare. His face seemed heptagonal, with black hair and brown eyes.

While Li Wei was lost in his thoughts, he suddenly noticed the man's presence.

"A beginner cultivator."

"The muscular man was only at the Qi Practitioner stage, and in terms of body cultivation, he was at the Master of Body Refinement stage."

"I only need the third level of Initial Monster to break these bars and get out."

"Fighting is a foolish and impossible idea, but escaping is possible."

"Hello, my little penguin, today you will be given to my little princess. Don't be sad; she will take care of you."

"The man was murmuring words about gifts and strange things about his granddaughter."

"This didn't go unnoticed by him; he started making sad chirps as if he didn't want to leave, and the man put on a sad face."

"I know you'll miss me, but it's a very special day for my granddaughter."

"They will take you to the Silver Cloud Kingdom, known by the Silver Moon Sword Sect."

"He put on a confused face and turned his head to feign confusion."

"The man, unable to resist, pulled out a map and pointed with his finger to a place. We are in the Great Valleys Kingdom, which is right here. You will arrive here."

"He put on an excited face and started hopping."

"The man with a weak heart couldn't resist and stayed there watching."

"Well, that would be it."

"The man was about to put away the map, but a chirp sounded, and he could see the penguin acting sad."

"Ugh, the man felt a pain in his chest, right in his heart. He couldn't bear to see it sad, so he took out the map and started explaining everything."

"Minutes passed, and he could see the penguin was satisfied and with a little smile, he saw the penguin fall asleep."

He left the room, and when he closed the door, Li Wei opened his eyes.

"What a shame!" he shouted in his head. "I'll never do it again, I swear on my name."

"Well, never mind, let's start the practice," he stretched and began to cultivate. He began to feel the energy around him, and then he realized he had no way to cultivate; he was missing a spiritual orb, something that every spiritual beast or monster had.

"Now what do I do?"

Desperation set in, but he kept trying.

"Well, there's no other option."

He thought about risking absorbing energy through his skin and storing it in his heart, but it was too risky since his heart was very small.

Suddenly, a red glow began to appear within him. At first, he was scared, but then he concentrated and looked inside himself.

"My soul? What happened to it? Why is it red?"

He thought and had a crazy idea; he thought about trying to hold all the spiritual energy within his soul. It was his only chance, but it was also risky. However, as he looked at his soul, he felt a sense of accomplishment filling him. He thought it was foolish and riskier than storing it in his heart.

"What is this feeling? Why do I feel like I can do it?"

"Never mind, I'll trust it. I've been through too much already, and I don't think a little trust will hurt."

A silly thought but one that filled him with confidence.

He tried to absorb the spiritual energy through his skin. At first, he failed, and it didn't reach his soul, but at some point, there was a connection.

"I did it! Yes, damn it!"

The sense of achievement was greater since he was the first person to try something like this.

While lost in his thoughts, he didn't notice something strange: his skin turned purple, and so did his eyes."

"Hehehe, I'm the best," huh? His thoughts paused for a moment; shock washed over him.

His voice sounded very strange and very feminine.

"Why does my voice sound like this? I'm not thinking that I'm speaking like this, am I?"

Suddenly, he had a

thought that made him break out in a cold sweat; he hoped it wasn't real.