Looking for Dark Stories with a Ruthless, Cold-Blooded Protagonist Who Puts Self-Interest First, No Female Lead 求黑暗，杀戮果断，冷血无情，利益至上，无女主

1. 101 你 Do You Believe There Are Ghosts in This World? 你相信，这个世界上有鬼吗？ Building BB楼Mystery896k WordsOngoing [Mind-bending] + [Slow-paced] + [Not for the faint-hearted] Thirty-six years ago, deep in the Tibetan grasslands, a secret research base studying the paranormal was rocked by a massive explosion. Only one person managed to escape alive. The male survivor not only made it out, but also brought a pair of pitch-black eyes from the secret base. Even after being removed from their body, they seemed alive. After this devastating disaster, the man deliberately avoided a mysterious organization and went 61Reads—Score—Shelves

   Reader note

   Horror, suspense, and eeriness; not for the faint of heart. No wish-fulfillment stories, no cultivation, no idiocy, no saintly figures, no system, no clichés, high intelligence, many plot twists; easy to miss if skimming.

2. 102 我 I Hunt Down Transmigrators in Ancient China 我在古代抓捕穿越者 Evergreen Greens长青菜菜Eastern Fantasy1.3M WordsCompleted The protagonist, Long Chen, transmigrates into an ancient world. But it turns out that world is full of transmigrators. They belong to many different factions. Long Chen, himself a transmigrator, receives a mission: eliminate every other transmigrator. … 3.4kReads—Score172Shelves

   Reader note

   I recommend this book to you.

3. 103 种 Farming: From Sect Tenant Farmer to Supreme Across the Myriad Worlds 种田：从宗门佃户到万界独尊 Foolish Zhi傻志Eastern Fantasy3.0M WordsOngoing [Farming] + [Ensemble cast] + [Lord] + [Conquest] + [System] + [Satisfying wish fulfillment] Zhang Guiyuan transmigrates to a parallel world at the end of the Eastern Han dynasty, where he becomes a tenant farmer growing spiritual plants for a sect. He awakens the strongest Lord System and obtains an unparalleled book: Postpartum Care for Sows He settles into a fine life of farming, raising pigs, and teasing his wicked sword cultivator little sister. But then a calamity that comes once every tho 3.1kReads5.7Score181Shelves

   Reader note

   [Farming] + [Ensemble Characters] + [Lords] + [Conquest] + [System] Set in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, this fictional Xianxia world begins with building power from Lake Baikal. The protagonist is decisive and ruthless.

4. 104 特 Special Operations Soldier: An Eagle Spreads Its Wings 特战兵之雏鹰展翅 Brother Eight Hundred Miles八百里哥Urban2.1M WordsCompleted Xiao Ronghan is an ordinary boy from a mountain village, born in a Miao settlement in southern Xinjiang. He has no interest in going to college, working odd jobs, or joining the army. He is a farmer’s son, yet doesn’t know how to farm. From childhood, he trained hard in martial arts and practiced his family’s inherited techniques under the guidance of his retired-soldier father, his master, who is known as the foremost expert in Miao territory, and the clan chief. After years of grueling trainin 14.4kReads9.1Score2.1kShelves
5. 105 铸 The Prodigy Smith: The Golden Cicada Hides the Iron Bow and Heavenly Tome 铸器骄子之金蝉铁弓藏天书 Brother Eight Hundred Miles八百里哥Eastern Fantasy1.8M WordsOngoing Young blacksmith Chu Xiaoyang carries venomous insects, wields a slingshot, and relies on a pair of iron hammers. Neither wholly righteous nor wholly wicked, he is hunted by the righteous, pursued by the wicked, and even spurned by his own family. Wherever he finds injustice, he brings his hammers crashing down... 138Reads—Score—Shelves
6. 106 收 The Shelter Goes Out of Control: Everyone's Personality Takes on the Dark Forces! 收容所失控：全员人格硬撼黑手！ Trope-Chasing Worker催梗打工人Mystery751k WordsCompleted [Suspense + Supernatural + Multiple Personality Switching + No Saintly Heroics + Endless Twists + Ruthless and Decisive] [The rating just came out, so it’ll gradually rise] Su Zhe, a teenager framed by psychiatrist Chen Jingxing as a “personality aberration,” harbors seven noisy, bickering negative personalities within him. At the brink of despair, an eighth uninvited guest arrives: the top serial killer known as “Shadow Nightmare,” whom the authorities have officially declared dead. As the rest 135Reads9.3Score—Shelves

   Reader note

   Negative personality + killer guest = top-tier counter-attack setup! Su Zhe's path of revenge is dedicated to curing hypocrisy and conspiracy.

7. 107 十 Ten Realms: I Was Ordinary 十界：我本平庸 Sanqi Confused Fish三七糊涂鱼Eastern Fantasy1.8M WordsOngoing (We are all ordinary people. Some say they don’t understand what I’m writing! The truth is, I simply want to tell the story of an ordinary person who keeps growing, improving, and learning. He feels lost and helpless, never knowing what to do. His life is full of stumbles, but through repeated setbacks and lessons, he slowly grows! Some people are born in Rome, while he is stuck in the mud. In Rome, it’s easy to cross the finish line. But there’s something all the more inspiring about perseverin 6.7kReads9.1Score557Shelves

   Reader note

   Meeting your eyes is like a gentle breeze and a bright moon.

8. 108 战 Warhammer: From Honkai: Star Rail to the Myriad Worlds 战锤：从崩铁到诸天万界 You Still Have Show你还有showAnime Fanfiction254k WordsOngoing As the fires of war across the galaxy intertwine with leaps through the starry firmament, a traveler wields the power of the stars to journey across the myriad worlds. Amid the embers of rebellion and the thunderous roar of the greenskins’ WAAAGH!, they witness the Luna Wolves’ broken oath and behold the Adeptus Mechanicus’s cold, fanatical faithful. With star trails as their blade, they must rewrite the dark ending ordained for the Warhammer universe on a battlefield where Chaos and order grind 3Reads—Score—Shelves

   Reader note

   [Evil laugh][Evil laugh][Evil laugh][Evil laugh][Evil laugh]

9. 109 我 I Became Awesome Through Technology 我靠科技开始牛掰 Binghuo Zi Wende丙火字文德Eastern Fantasy1.1M WordsCompleted [No System] [Villain in the Later Chapters] [Immortal-Sucking Technique] [Soul Devouring] [Fast Leveling] A scientist transmigrates to the cultivation world and gradually transforms from a good person into a demonic cultivator. 293Reads—Score—Shelves

   Reader note

   Villains, good turns bad

10. 110 妖 Tales of Demons and Ghosts at Night 妖鬼夜话 Binghuo Zi Wende丙火字文德Mystery209k WordsCompleted My new book, I Get Awesome with Technology, is now being serialized. My short ghost stories The Water Ghost, The Seventh Night, The Departure That Year, and The Soul-Calling Lantern are available on Tomato Short Stories. 421Reads6.6Score—Shelves
11. 111 我 I Cultivate Through Bloodsucking 我靠吸血修仙 Binghuo Zi Wende丙火字文德Eastern Fantasy357k WordsCompleted The new novel, I Get Awesome Through Technology, is currently being serialized and has already reached one million words. The ghost story collection, Tales of Demons and Ghosts at Night, is complete. If you like ghost stories, go check it out. 59Reads—Score—Shelves
12. 112 祖 The Ancestral Dragon Reincarnates: I Use Dragon Qi to Subdue All Heavens for Eternity 祖龙轮回朕以龙气镇万古诸天 True Lord of the Barren Ridge荒岭真君Eastern Fantasy678k WordsOngoing [Ancestral Dragon Ying Zheng] + [slow burn] + [a touch of dragon qi as a golden finger] + [no female lead] + [decisive and ruthless] + [scheming] Humans are the spirit of all things; souls are the essence of heaven and earth. I am Ying Zheng. I died from an elixir of immortality presented by an alchemist, and my soul transmigrated into the body of Lin Yuan, a sixteen-year-old boy in another world. A poor spiritual sea. Betrayed by my elder brother. Barely scraping by. But in this world, wher 37Reads—Score—Shelves

    Reader note

    I'm recommending this novel by a humble author. Could you, esteemed heroes and warriors, grace me with your presence? It's an absolutely dark fantasy, an ensemble piece with a vast world-building, no female lead. Qin Shi Huang, the First Emperor of Qin, transmigrates to another world and rises from the bottom, showcasing imperial methods and the true nature of an emperor's cunning. None of the characters exhibit any signs of simplistic intelligence. There are many heroes and warriors, but no high-level battles. Every step is calculated and strategic. To gain a powerful backer, he schemes to marry the elder's daughter, doing nothing but acquiring resources for cultivation. When resources are scarce, he steals from his classmates, disregarding friendship. To gain advantage in the martial arts tournament, he ruthlessly kills even the clan leader's daughter who helps him, his every move deadly. One wrong move and he falls into the abyss; one wrong step and his life is reduced to mere mortal.

13. 113 少 Girl, I Fused with a Ghost Immortal, and No One Is More Eerie Than Me 少女，融合成鬼仙没人比我更诡异 Ruo Xiaomeng若小萌Eastern Fantasy817k WordsOngoing [System + Transmigration + Xuanhuan + Transmigration to a Post-Apocalyptic World + Decisive and Ruthless + Card Draws + Strange World + Invincible + Constant Leveling Up] After finally becoming a big shot in the post-apocalyptic world, Ruo Xiaomeng thought she had saved the world. But she soon discovered that this was merely the world's surface, and it shattered before her eyes. At the brink of death, the System activated transmigration automatically. An accident during the journey sent her to t 370Reads8.1Score—Shelves

    Reader note

    Fantasy novel with a single female protagonist who cultivates immortality.

14. 114 诸 The Bloodwing Cult Master of the Myriad Worlds 诸天万界之血翼教主 Lü Bu Battles Li Yuanba吕布大战李元霸Male-Channel Fanfiction542k WordsOngoing The protagonist, Zhou Yuan, binds himself to the Myriad Worlds Cult Leader System. He had planned to transmigrate into a famous wish-fulfillment novel and rise to the top, but instead he accidentally lands in Zhongzhou and inherits the legacy of the Immortal Venerable's first life: the Bloodwing Demon Cult. Joining forces with Wuji, he breaks through the barriers between worlds and explores the Myriad Worlds! (Three new arcs have since been added: the Cangwu Cultivation Realm, the One Piece worl 3.7kReads—Score141Shelves
15. 115 炼 After a Hundred Thousand Years of Qi Refining, I’m Already Invincible 炼气十万年，我已经无敌 Ding Chengjin丁程金Eastern Fantasy209k WordsCompleted [Ten Thousand Years at the Qi Refining Realm + Invincible]+ [Reviving His Sect in the Lower Realm]+ [Taking Disciples]+ [Defeating Every Villainous Sect]+ [Slaying Demons and Exorcising Evil]+ [Free Travel Between the Human, Immortal, and Demon Realms, as well as the Gold, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth Timespaces]+ [Protagonist's Halo]+ [An Incredibly Satisfying Power Fantasy] Zuo Xiaoyu had spent a hundred thousand years in the Immortal Realm, stuck at the Qi Refining Realm. One day, he discover 347Reads—Score—Shelves

    Reader note

    This is a friend's book; everyone is welcome to listen! [Heart emoji]

16. 116 九 The Nine Tripods Shrouded in Dust 九鼎蒙尘 Yuki Nao of the Earth Formation Pavilion地阵阁的结城奈绪Mystery644k WordsOngoing History student Chu Ye inherits his grandfather’s bronze compass, only to brush against the buried secrets of Huaxia: Reflections in mirrors begin devouring the living. A hundred-year-old shamanic corpse, wrapped in chains, crawls from the depths of the Yellow River. Ancient gods stir in Chang’an’s ley lines, fed by the dance of a noble consort. The bloodline ability he is forced to awaken, “Empathic Sense,” is both a key to glimpsing the truth and a curse that drives him toward madness: Each ti 14Reads—Score—Shelves

    Reader note

    The moment history student Chu Ye touched his ancestral bronze compass, a crack in his understanding quietly opened. Reflected fingerprints sprouted in the mirror, cinnabar blood curses seeped from the beams of the old house, and nine bronze coffins at the bottom of the Yellow River resonated with the evil chapters of the *Water Dragon Scripture*—beneath the tranquil surface of the Chinese land slumbered not gods, but a cosmic cancer known as the "Ancient Gods." The surviving scrolls of the Keeper burned in blood and fire: the Imperial Observatory's talisman drones scanned distorted space, the Mohist disciple used a lightning-struck jujube wood pipe to repel the corpse puppets, and the whispers of inhuman beings emanated from beneath the mask of a Nuo opera girl. Meanwhile, the bronze cauldron patterns spreading across the back of Chu Ye's neck were scorching his reason; each "synesthesia" was devouring his memories: he saw the writhing flesh and blood array beneath the steps of the Imperial Concubine's Rainbow Robe Dance, heard the sound of the Candlelight's Breath gnawing at time in the Kunlun Ice Cave, and was even more terrified by the awakening of the Soul-Devouring Demon deep within his bloodline—that hunger originating from the Void yearned to devour the stars. When the Nine Cauldrons Seal collapses, the boundary between reality and madness completely dissolves. Blood-red characters on cheongsams wander amidst the city's neon lights, movable type monuments reconstruct a desecrated history, and deep within the Yellow River's whirlpool, a colossal bronze gate, enveloped by billions of pupils, slowly opens. The Old Ones? No, something far more ancient—the ultimate terror sealed in blood by our ancestors, our own very being. He chuckles behind the gate, and with every breath you take, you awaken Him.

17. 117 高 High Martial Arts: A Blade That Slashes the Heavens 高武之刀斩苍穹 White-Robed Mortal Life浮生白衣Urban576k WordsCompleted He clawed his way out of a blood pool in hell, and returned as a walking calamity among mortals. His former name had long since burned away. Now, he is Zhang Mo, a vicious weapon born for nothing but annihilation! His blade is his tongue, and an unmarked stele bears witness. Every ringing stroke of his blade is the final word of countless lives. Tenderness? Loyalty? Dust in the wind! In his world, there is only the solitary peak of slaughter, watered with scalding blood. 6Reads5.3Score—Shelves

    Reader note

    This book has no female lead; the protagonist is ruthless, decisive, and cold-blooded.

18. 118 网 Online Game: Rebuilding My Life 网游之重塑人生 Wang the Fool王呆子Sports1.3M WordsOngoing Qin Feng used to be a hopeless romantic. He gave his girlfriend his whole heart and treated her like a queen. And what did he get in return? She casually tossed out, "You can't give me the life I want," then turned around and walked away. Qin Feng was completely crushed. He holed up in his rented apartment every day, questioning his whole existence and wondering what the point of living was. Eventually, with nothing else to do and no other options, he plunged into an online game to kill time. 492Reads9.5Score343Shelves

    Reader note

    Want to make more money? Eat shameless capsules and drink immoral water. Feeling heartbroken or uncomfortable? Take some ethical painkillers. Such toxic content, come check it out!

19. 119 入 Invasion Countdown 入侵倒计时 Dream Technology梦想科技Sci-Fi & Apocalypse764k WordsCompleted In 2040, the international situation is in turmoil and the world is on the brink of World War III. The military forces of every nation have been severely depleted, leaving them no time to deal with potential threats. Meanwhile, taking advantage of humanity's infighting, the insectoid race arrives on Earth alongside a vast meteor shower. By the time the United Nations notices, it is powerless to organize an effective interception. The insectoids quickly establish nests and launch frenzied attacks 5Reads—Score—Shelves

    Reader note

    Lin Mo slowly raised his right hand, covered in black carapace, and looked at the sharp bone spurs at his fingertips. The last trace of human struggle in his eyes finally vanished completely. The last human tear slid down his left eye.

20. 120 龙 A Dragon Kingdom Police Cadet Charges Into Maitira 龙国警校生，勇闯迈提拉 Thousand-Year-Old Stone Monkey千年老石猴Urban137k WordsOngoing [Decisive, not a bleeding heart, self-serving, scheming, highly intelligent, always planning several steps ahead]+ [Everyone is ruthless]+ [No System, no golden finger]+ [No characters acting stupidly, logical]+ [No heroine, female supporting character] Ye Zilu plays by his own rules! This is a logically consistent power fantasy: With his options exhausted in Longguo, Ye Zilu, a graduate of the Longguo Police Academy, ventures into Maitila to survive. After joining the police force, he uses ever 1Reads—Score—Shelves

    Reader note

    Decisive and ruthless, self-serving, highly intelligent and emotionally intelligent, strategic and cunning, not a saint, logical—welcome to evaluate.

21. 121 救 Redemption for Mo Wentian 救赎莫问天 Heartfelt Obsession心痴念Mystery1.0M WordsCompleted (No heroine + not a wish-fulfillment story + the protagonist follows the principle that killing is saving, and gradually becomes the God Who Questions Heaven) He rises through blood and cunning. When all the rules collapse, will humanity still deserve the right to choose? 1Reads—Score—Shelves

    Reader note

    High IQ, mind-bending, bizarre, paradoxical cause and effect, a Möbius strip of life, the formation of the Seven Deadly Sins organization, to save the world and become a god through killing.

22. 122 刑 The Soul of a Castrated Man 刑余之魂 Old Half-Shell老半壳子Mystery1.5M WordsCompleted (A major sci-fi mystery thriller. No System, no plot armor, extremely dark and violent. The timid should stay away! No brainless readers allowed!) My name is Li Xin. I was born in a glass container. My father wasn’t human, but a projection, a ghost without a physical form, just like me. I am a wandering soul from the past, forcibly dragged into this strange future. I have no supernatural powers or mental strength. I’m just a defective reject. Yet fate demands that I fight the most powerful being 2Reads7.5Score—Shelves

    Reader note

    A representative of the dark genre, it strikes at the very core of the soul. Enter at your own risk if you are easily frightened!

23. 123 逆 The Rebellious Demon Lord Would Rather Become a Demon Than an Immortal 逆乱魔君，宁可成魔不为仙 Qingqiu Jiuyu青丘久域Eastern Fantasy109k WordsOngoing Fellow cultivators, what is righteousness? What is demonic? What is the pinnacle of the sword, the summit of the spear? Better to become a demon than an immortal. What does it matter if death is certain? Sword energy sweeps in every direction, looking down on the world. All who stand in my way will be crushed. (“Sword cultivation, genius, scheming, ruthless. The protagonist gradually turns darker later on. If you're interested, head to the main story.”) —Reads—Score—Shelves

    Reader note

    He's cunning in the beginning, turns evil later, doesn't reason, and is incredibly fierce in fights.

24. 124 仙 The Immortal Path? The Path of Death! 仙道？死道！ Jue Love ScarJue恋殇Eastern Fantasy3.0M WordsCompleted [Horror Cultivation] + [Survival at All Costs] You are what you eat, so eating bitterness won't make you a better person. Only eating people will. An immortal once said, “If you're not at the table, you're on the menu.” Humans are the spirit of all things, born with immortal bodies and prized as heavenly medicine. In the cultivation world, the only way to cultivate is to absorb the power and fortune of others! That's why ordinary people are kept as living cauldrons. If you don't consume others, —Reads—Score—Shelves

    Reader note

    🍀🍀Dark fiction + ruthless and decisive🍀You are what you eat, so hard work won't make you superior; only eating others will. If you're not at the dinner table, you're at the dinner table. In this world, you either get eaten or you eat others to survive.

25. 125 族 My Entire Clan Was Possessed by Transmigrators, So I Went on a Killing Spree! 族人全被穿越者夺舍，我杀疯了！ The Second Answer Sheet第二张答题卡Eastern Fantasy132k WordsOngoing [Decisive and ruthless + anti-cliché + not a mindless power fantasy + no heroine + dark story + proactive protagonist] After three hundred years of slaughter in Qian Cun, he reached the pinnacle of the demonic path. Using a wandering traveler to suppress the source of a divine-grade totem, he reversed time and was reborn. He returns to a hopeless situation from the start: his aptitude is even worse, and the soul-summoning ritual brings a horde of transmigrators from his own clan. Everyone is an 3Reads—Score—Shelves
26. 126 异 Necromancer in a World of Warcraft 异世魔兽之死灵法师 Young Master Chu Liu楚柳公子Anime Fanfiction500k WordsOngoing [Warhammer universe + necromancer + apocalyptic disaster + World of Warcraft + mecha space battles] A young man transmigrates to an alien planet. This is a World of Warcraft where spirit and flesh, virtual and real, blend together: a living hell where artillery, machines, armored vehicles, and Warcraft tribes wage a bloody struggle against one another. The planet is ruled by a group of Warcraft lords, and humans are nothing more than “ants” at the bottom of the food chain! Want to avoid becoming —Reads—Score—Shelves

    Reader note

    It's dark and gloomy enough!!

Other lists with Do You Believe There Are Ghosts in This World?