Genius villain

Ren, a cheerfully cynical genius, awakens in Ashenmoor, a modern cultivation world teeming with urban cultivators and ancient sects. Blessed with an unparalleled cheat - instant mastery and self-cultivation of any technique - he can ascend through cultivation realms (Tier 1 to 20) with frightening speed. Yet, Ren is driven by a profound, unacknowledged hunger for true belonging, a core wound masked by his effortless brilliance. As he effortlessly collects power, his path inevitably crosses with the established order, a conglomerate of ancient powers and hidden factions guarding the world's deepest secrets. Ren, initially seeking only personal freedom and amusement, soon finds himself entangled in a conspiracy that threatens to unravel the very fabric of Ashenmoor, forcing him to confront not just powerful enemies, but the emptiness his 'genius' has left behind.