Looking for a High-IQ Story Where the Protagonist Plans Ten Moves Ahead 求高智商的书，走一步算十步的那种

1. 1 我 I Have a Joker Card 我有一张小丑牌 Azure Company蔚蓝公司Urban2.2M WordsCompleted They say that on the day some people turn eighteen, the gods grant them a playing card with a supernatural ability. There are 52 playing cards and 52 different abilities. Those who receive a supernatural playing card are allowed to attend the best ability-user school. The campus belle: “I have the Queen of Spades. I can conjure all kinds of weapons!” The rich kid: “My dad has the Jack of Diamonds. He can get unlimited money!” Meanwhile, somewhere, a boy took his own playing card and used all 52 155.9kReads8.9Score23.9kShelves

   Reader note

   The first one is alright, quite pretty. The second one is really something else; you won't understand it if you don't use your brain.

2. 2 怪 Strange Tales Livestream! 怪谈直播间！ Stone Giant Monster石头巨怪Mystery1.3M WordsCompleted Welcome to the Rules of the Strange. This is a battle of blood and fire, a test of wit and courage. The power of words cannot be resisted, and the eerie rules must not be broken. In a seemingly hopeless situation, find the one correct answer, break free of your constraints, and search for a way to survive. 173kReads9.7Score17.7kShelves
3. 3 全EN Global Death Exam: Straight from the Execution Grounds to the Test Room 全球死考：刚下刑场你让我去考试 I Love Eating Cat Chips我爱吃猫片哇Mystery1.0M WordsOngoing [Tactical battles + mild horror + infinite-world adventure] The Deadly College Entrance Exam has arrived, dragging thirty million candidates into hell. The exam questions have been replaced with scenes from horror movies and disasters. Even staying alive is a pipe dream. Pass and earn rewards. Fail and be erased! Ten points earn ten million. One hundred points earn Tyrant genes. One thousand points earn the Apocalypse. Only ??? can make it out of this exam. To investigate, the military “ 1.5MReads9.3Score278.9kShelves

   Reader note

   The charges are immortal with many twists and turns, and there are many foreshadowing elements within the ten days.

4. 4 欺EN Deceiving the Gods: A Performance! 欺神演出！ Violent Purple-Skinned Person暴力紫皮人Mystery5.4M WordsOngoing [Satisfying revenge + Mind-bending twists + Slow burn + Strategic battles + Loads of plot twists] “When I thought death was the end, I opened my eyes and discovered that death was only a new beginning.” Lin Yu was killed by a junior schoolmate he thought had come to confess her love, only to discover that he hadn’t truly died. Instead, he had entered a deadly game! Only the winner would earn the chance to “live again.” Fortunately, Lin Yu awakened the “Unique Class: Deceiver.” [Any lie you 524.8kReads9.3Score85.5kShelves

   Reader note

   The male protagonist is the intellectual ceiling of the entire book, planning every move in advance. The supporting characters think they are not pawns, but they are already part of the game.

5. 5 赦 Night's Pardoner 赦夜人 Li Ma李马Urban775k WordsOngoing [The author has a completed title on the Top Peak list, “The Usurper (Below the Upper City).” Read with confidence!] [Ensemble Cast] [No System] [Not Invincible] [Plot-Focused] [Dark Tone] [Not Mindless] [Character Growth] Every shift from day to night is a silent contest of survival. After nightfall, the world becomes a playground for the Blighted. A special light source can offer humanity brief protection. Some live high above, beneath the lights. Others cling to life in the mud. No matter how 264.4kReads9.0Score28.1kShelves
6. 6 十EN Ten Days to the End 十日终焉 Pest Control Team Member杀虫队队员Mystery3.2M WordsCompleted 2024 Tomato Novel Annual Peak Rankings TOP 1 | 2024 China Online Literature Influence List | 2024 China Good Novel Award | Over 2 million copies sold (No harem, no formulaic tropes, no invincibility, no System, no mindless antics, no wish fulfillment. Read with caution if these bother you.) Just when I thought it was an ordinary day, I discovered I had been captured and taken to the End. Just when I thought I could escape by continually taking part in death games, people began awakening supernat 1.7MReads9.9Score212.7kShelves

   Reader note

   High IQ? Interesting. ① It's a cast of both entertainers and villains, all with high intelligence. The protagonist doesn't rely on a system, but purely on his brains and skills. ② Two villains in total, their minds are frighteningly fast. ③ The flawed jade is called King, and the end of ten days is Madness. Tomato is the god of infinite flow novels (except for Xiao Ran), I think they're all correct.

7. 7 诡EN The House of Dread 诡舍 The Sound of Wind and Rain at Night,夜来风雨声丶Mystery2.1M WordsCompleted [Infinite-flow + Mild Horror + Survival + One Female Lead] A driverless bus carried a group of cursed people to a strange black lodge… Inside the lodge stood a door stained red with blood. At regular intervals, the cursed were forcibly dragged through the blood-red door and into terrifying worlds, where they had to complete horrifying events… After Ning Qiushui survived one bizarre and terrifying story after another inside the lodge, narrowly escaping death each time, he discovered that none of 714.1kReads9.6Score103.9kShelves
8. 8 惊 The Horror Realm: Entering the Strange World from a Psychiatric Hospital 惊悚领域：从精神病院进入诡世界 Tender Little Puppy香嫩的小狗Mystery1.5M WordsOngoing (The hardcover edition has been published!) [Infinite Flow] [Original Horror Instances] [Mild Horror] “Chen Ji murdered his mother a week ago and spent three days with her corpse before he was arrested.” “You have been diagnosed with schizophrenia and are about to be transferred to a psychiatric hospital for supervision.” “Do you have anything to say?” The black-haired boy before them slowly raised his head, his expression calm. “I’ll say it again.” “The thing I killed wasn’t my mother...” “It w 281.1kReads9.5Score47.6kShelves
9. 9 律 The Lawyer and the Judge: I Killed My Client 律师审判者：我杀了我的当事人 Feng Er Xi风二兮Mystery1.4M WordsCompleted [Trial + Reality + Battle of Wits + Perfect Crime + Outlaw Zhang San] The score has just come out. Since he was kept in solitary confinement, it will gradually go up! He gets murderers acquitted, helps rapists get off, and wins suspended sentences for fraudsters. As long as there’s a weakness in the chain of evidence, he can get them out. Eyewitnesses, physical evidence, and an alibi: the classic three-piece set. But his clients keep dying in bizarre ways, one after another! Wang Haibo is dead. 464Reads7.0Score153Shelves

   Reader note

   Recommended. You can invest with confidence. It's a high-IQ crime story. The protagonist is a lawyer, and the person in the hat knows it's him, but there's no evidence.

10. 10 别 Don't Call Me a Demon 别叫我恶魔 Yi Qingfeng弈青锋Urban5.7M WordsCompleted [Qing Feng's new novel, This Player Has Something Wrong with His Head, is now serializing and has plenty of chapters ready to binge] The sacred heavenly gates stand across the sky, while the demonic abyss of time and space lays waste to the human world. When twelve spirit springs burst from the earth, when the moon no longer belongs to humanity... Where will we go from here? A world of gods? A world of demons? No. This is a world that belongs to humanity! I will take up the crown no one else wou 185.8kReads9.4Score17kShelves
11. 11 我 I'm Just Investing! Why Are You Saying I Keep a Private Army of Deadly Retainers? 我只是投资！凭什么说我养死士？ Head Down, Out of the Sun埋头不见日Urban1.7M WordsOngoing [Tycoon fantasy, laid-back, identifying anything, raising a private army] Zhao Ye was bound to a System before birth. On the day he came of age and started university, his extraordinary life officially began. By scanning people with the System, he could easily see through their hidden cards, making every investment a sure thing! But Zhao Ye’s greatest investments weren’t in property. They were in people. Police officer: “So that’s your explanation for raising a private army?” Zhao Ye: “Officer, 27.5kReads7.8Score2.3kShelves

    Reader note

    Personal Recommendations

12. 12 官 Officialdom: Starting by Slapping My Boss Twice 官锋：从打领导两巴掌开始 Little Lotus Breeze小荷风Urban1.4M WordsOngoing Made the scapegoat from the start? Pushed to the margins, with my future and my life ruined? Fine, I’ll remember this. There’s plenty of time to settle the score. My girlfriend breaks up with me, and my love life falls apart. What was I even here for? Fine, I’ll set you free. Don’t regret it. I turn around with power in my hands and return. Li Rui laughs aloud. Those who hurt and slandered me will all pay the price. 31.4kReads8.3Score2.6kShelves

    Reader note

    I recommend reading these two novels about officialdom, which vividly depict the scheming and power struggles among all the characters.

13. 13 我 I Turned the Horror World Into a Raising Game! 我把惊悚世界玩成养成游戏！ Yu Zuo予作Mystery2.3M WordsCompleted A mysterious force descended upon Earth, giving rise to another world of terror. Everyone was forcibly sent into the world of horror games on their eighteenth birthday. While everyone else was immersed in fear, struggling to survive in the cracks between life and death, Qin Nuo discovered that he could earn System rewards by influencing the ghosts’ emotions. And every time he completed a dungeon, he could establish his own business in the world of horror. So he became a food runner at the Yin Sp 112.7kReads9.5Score11.9kShelves
14. 14 官 The Road to Power: A Clash of Ambition and Desire 官途从权欲交锋开始 Little Lotus Breeze小荷风Urban1.7M WordsOngoing [Political Revenge] + [Career Advancement] + [Alliances of Mutual Interest] + [Romantic Entanglements] + [Political Scheming and Wits] + [Multiple Heroines] + [Ensemble Cast] [The male lead keeps a low profile without being creepy early on, reveals his sharp edge with a roguish charm in the middle, and takes revenge on all his enemies later.] Wang Maoyuan is a "golden phoenix" who flew out of the countryside. The year he graduated from college, he passed the civil service exam and joined the la 17kReads7.7Score1.1kShelves
15. 15 左 Unorthodox Ways: The Art of Refining Demons with Humans 左道旁门，人炼妖法 Huang Siniang in a Gentle Breeze清风雅静的黄四娘Urban189k WordsOngoing Serious version: The world changed, and a supernatural wind began to blow. (Spiritual qi revival, the rise of the supernatural, progression.) Not-so-serious version: Seeing the peculiar, sharp-tongued haggler and the sharp-tongued, peculiar haggler, and hearing names like Yuhua Prefecture, Fang Yuan, who had transmigrated in the flesh, decided to make a good connection. "Put it all on my tab." 24.1kReads—Score3.8kShelves
16. 16 异EN City of Beasts 异兽迷城 Peng Pai彭湃Urban3.0M WordsCompleted Gao Yang was an orphan. At the age of six, he transmigrated to a parallel world and began living in a warm family of five. When he turned eighteen, Gao Yang accidentally discovered the truth about the world: this was not a parallel world at all, but a mysterious realm, and all the relatives and friends around him were terrifying Beasts! Gao Yang nearly lost his life 470.5kReads9.7Score67.8kShelves
17. 17 我 I Became a Superpowered Grandpa Across the Heavens 我在诸天当超能力爷 Super Invincible Haji Person超级无敌哈基人Urban348k WordsOngoing After transmigrating to a world of superpowers, Xia Ji awakened the ability “Fool’s Stone.” Like the legendary Philosopher’s Stone, it could “turn stone into gold,” except it made fool’s gold, otherwise known as pyrite. What a tragedy. What do you mean I have the “Book of All Worlds,” which lets me send avatars with different superpowers into the Myriad Worlds, then absorb their achievements to grow stronger? Hallelujah, I’m taking off! Fool’s Stone: attain the [Fool’s Gold] Dao Fruit in vain. 559.5kReads9.0Score115.7kShelves
18. 18 邪 Evil God Moran! 邪神墨然！ Three Winds 11三风11Mystery3.1M WordsCompleted Why does the headless ghost in the hospital keep praying at midnight? Why does the skin-stealing ghost in the desolate mountain village wail without stopping? And why does the long-haired female ghost in the studio apartment shriek in the middle of the night? None of this is a distortion of human nature, much less a collapse of morality. It’s just that… someone’s having an episode! In an age when horror has returned and vengeful ghosts run rampant, Bai Yuan, dressed in a hospital gown, smiled ca 154.1kReads9.3Score16.1kShelves
19. 19 国 National Fate: The Weakest Talent Slays Its Way Through the World, Unleashed! 国运：最弱天赋杀穿世界，开了！ Xianyu Loves Slacking Off爱摸鱼的咸禹Urban381k WordsOngoing National destiny, loans, absurdity, brains, subverting expectations, multiple heroines Natural disasters and turmoil herald the apocalypse. Resources run dry, and nations descend into chaos. The National Destiny Game appears out of nowhere, and all nations unite against Huaguo. Huaguo is about to be wiped out, but a heaven-sent powerhouse turns the tide. "The National Destiny Game? Starting from the brink of national destruction? Those two conditions together fit the tropes of national destiny n 116.6kReads8.4Score19.1kShelves
20. 20 杀 The Assassin Lu Yutang 杀手陆鱼塘 Dharma Name: One More Watch法号一更Mystery1.3M WordsCompleted (No transmigration, no System.) Lu Yutang, a professional killer, never imagined that his wealthy landlady would turn out to be a police detective, living right across the hall from him. What a predicament. (Other works in this series are now available. Visit the author’s page.) 39.8kReads9.1Score3.8kShelves

    Reader note

    The protagonists are all incredibly intelligent. In the first book, the protagonist uses his high intelligence to commit murder, earning the nickname "Ghost." In the second book, the protagonist is an S-class special operations agent for the Gray Tower, a clandestine national force, possessing both high intelligence and exceptional skills. In the third book, the protagonist is tricked by his brother into robbing a bank (in a drill), meticulously planning every move.

21. 21 百 Ghosts in the Apocalypse: I Became the Strongest Ghost Tamer 百鬼末世：我成了最强御鬼师 Yi People's Firelight彝人烟火Mystery2.9M WordsOngoing [A Full 1,000 Types of Ghosts] Mysterious ghosts include Jin Buhuan, the White Bone Bodhisattva, the Earthly Branches War Lord, and the Blood-Drop Plum Blossom. The powerful ones include Asura, Rakshasa, the Butcher, the Martial Champion, and the Emperor. The eerie ones include Painted Skin, the Red Robe, the Chubby Baby, the Coroner, the Flower-Waisted Bride, the Embalmer, and the Ever-Burning Lamp. Every type has its own evolution path: Drowned Ghost → Water Monkey → Kappa → ? (There’s more af 115.3kReads9.5Score9.7kShelves
22. 22 咒 Jujutsu Kaisen: As a Special Grade, I Went to Fight the Myriad-Year Corpse Immortal 咒回：特级的我去打万业尸仙了 Super Invincible Haji Person超级无敌哈基人Anime Fanfiction471k WordsCompleted [System] [The Myriad Worlds] [Cursed Combat] [Exhilarating Battles] Xia Jie, bound to the Challenge Space, can challenge every powerful fighter across the Myriad Worlds, including Sukuna, the Giant Shark King, Miracle You, the Corpse Immortal of Ten Thousand Industries, Gatanothor, the Hand of God, Hellstar, Boros, Yhwach, the Anti-Spiral King… Challenge Space: "Will you win?" Xia Jie: "I'm guaranteed to die, but it'll be worth every penny!" Fortunately, every time he dies, he can rewind ti 43.4kReads9.0Score5.1kShelves
23. 23 恐 Horror Tavern: I Only Raise the Most Ferocious Creatures 恐怖酒馆：我只养大凶之物 Lord Salted Fish咸鱼君Mystery1.6M WordsCompleted Tucked away in a quiet alley is a strange tavern that can grant your wishes, as long as you’re willing to set up a terrifying idol in your home... 6.3kReads9.4Score800Shelves
24. 24 午 The Midnight Pawnshop: The Living Must Keep Away 午夜当铺，活人回避 Chong Xiayueban虫下月半Mystery4.0M WordsOngoing [Traditional Supernatural Horror] [Chinese Folk Customs] [Unorthodox Trade] [Tales of Evil Objects] [No Romance] This is a strange pawnshop that deals exclusively in sinister objects with special value! When something goes against the natural order, evil must be at work! Some things simply should not exist in this world! Coins stuffed into the mouths of the dead, an executioner's blade, grave mushrooms, flesh lingzhi, Kunlun fetuses... Evil objects can harm people, but they can also help them! T 278.9kReads9.4Score24.4kShelves
25. 25 我 I’m a Dual-Personality Surgeon, Professionally a Ripper 我，双面手术师，职业开膛手 Clouds Can Smile云会笑Urban1.3M WordsCompleted Some call him Miracle Doctor Lu, while others call him Lu the Skinner. Some owe their battlefield dominance to the mechanical limbs he fitted them with; others have breathed their last beneath his surgical knife. He can save someone on the brink of death, or make a corpse disappear without a trace. By day, he is the warmest kindness in the world; by night, he is a terror that makes the whole world tremble. A scalpel rests between his fingers: one side is a demon, the other an angel. His name is 19.9kReads9.4Score2.2kShelves
26. 26 规 Rule-Based Horror? I Choose to Rebel 规则怪谈？我选择叛逆 Alas, Deep Love奈何情深Mystery1.5M WordsCompleted [A short drama adaptation of the same name is now available. You can watch it on the platform. Thank you for your support.] [Subverting expectations + no heroine + hilarious + sly schemer + rebellious + eerie + national fate] Rule-based horror descends upon Earth. The uncanny invades reality. Those chosen are sent into horror worlds, where they represent their respective nations and face the horrors within. Su Xiao is chosen by the horror world and entrusted with the task of representing the Dra 48.4kReads9.6Score6kShelves
27. 27 异EN Another World: My Life Has Cheat Codes! 异世界：我的人生开了挂！ A Salty Fish c一条咸鱼cEastern Fantasy5.9M WordsCompleted [Vampires, werewolves, technology, potions, ghosts, biohumans, divination, puppets, and every terrifying element you can imagine: this world has them all.] Lin En transmigrated into such a bizarre otherworld and became an apprentice at a potion shop. "Something is wrong with that man! He never uses anesthetic when performing surgery!" "That shop is a scam! The moment you go in, they find a pile of illnesses even if you are perfectly healthy!" "But wait, isn't that shop supposed to be the bes 138.8kReads9.6Score16.9kShelves
28. 28 诡EN The Horrors Are Hard to Kill? Sorry, I'm the Truly Immortal One 诡异难杀？抱歉，我才是真正不死 Six Gourds六个葫芦Urban2.0M WordsCompleted This book has been signed for publication, so enjoy it with confidence. [Death Regression + Foreknowledge of the Future + Kill the Saintly One First + Dark Tone + Supernatural Resurgence] After accidentally transmigrating to a world invaded by the supernatural, Fang Xiu awakens the ability to return from death, also known as turning back time. Whenever he dies, time rewinds to just before his death. In this perilous and uncanny world, he could have laid low, but instead he chooses to announce to 234.4kReads9.5Score28.3kShelves
29. 29 请EN Call Me the Ghost Messenger 请叫我鬼差大人 The Cat from the Xu Family徐二家的猫Mystery2.1M WordsCompleted After the Eternal Night, terror returned. Ten miles of desolate graves, eerie singing. An old man searching for his arms, a headless baby... They kept piecing their bodies back together, unleashing an even more terrifying aura. In the wasteland, even a severed hand could destroy heaven and earth. In this world of darkness and despair, a post office appeared and vanished from view... A mysterious young man, a postal carriage traveling through the void... One blood-red letter after another became 104.1kReads9.5Score9.9kShelves
30. 30 诸EN The Gods' Foolish Game 诸神愚戏 Ninety Autumns in January一月九十秋Urban3.7M WordsCompleted I have two principles in life: 1. I never lie. 2. I never believe anything anyone says, including myself. “Sir, I would like to point out that your second statement conflicts with the first.” “How so?” “If you never lie, why don’t you believe what you say?” “Oh, sorry. I forgot to mention that I don’t consider myself human.” “?” Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Cheng Shi, Cheng Shi who never lies. What, you’ve never heard of me? That’s all right. You simply haven’t been deceived by m 519.8kReads9.7Score69kShelves
31. 31 惊 Thriller Game: From the Start, I Urge the Ghost Courtesan to Reform! 惊悚游戏：开局劝鬼花魁从良！ Sweet Sweet Sweet Stories甜甜甜故事Mystery1.2M WordsCompleted [Horror game + comedic mild horror + infinite-flow + livestream + no heroine + the protagonist doesn’t act human + everyone is clever + everyone lies + original game scenarios] [The only novel online to tell the story of what happened before the horror game invaded!] [Horror scenario “Ghost Brothel” fully loaded. Players, please get ready!] Lin Xun, a hack screenwriter, is transported into a horror game. Unblockable horror livestreams spread across the internet, turning this into a terrifying sp 5.8kReads9.3Score625Shelves

    Reader note

    First book: Highly recommended, no doubt about it. The protagonist is highly intelligent, plans ten steps ahead for every one he takes, and utilizes everyone's strengths to orchestrate events, always having a trump card to control the overall situation. After reading this book, I couldn't read any other books for a while. I can't say everyone will like it, but I truly loved it. Second book: It was my stepping stone into encountering high-IQ protagonists, and it's my white moonlight. I've forgotten a lot of the plot, but it was really addictive when I read it.

32. 32 从EN Once Upon a Time, There Was a Demon-Suppressing Pass 从前有座镇妖关 The Cat from the Xu Family徐二家的猫Urban3.0M WordsCompleted Once, there was a pass like this. Once, there was a group of people like this. Every inch of this pass was stained with blood. These people would not return until they were dead. All so that, amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood, in their final moments, they could turn around and see the lights of countless homes shining behind them, with peace and safety year after year. 160.1kReads9.6Score18kShelves
33. 33 第 The Ninth Special Zone 第九特区 Wei Jie伪戒Urban6.1M WordsCompleted After the catastrophe, the land was scarred beyond recognition. Food was scarce, resources were in short supply, and the situation was chaotic... A young man who had fought his way out of an undeveloped zone, with endless yellow sand at his back, came alone to District Nine to make a living. Yet he never expected to meet a few good friends by chance, rise to prominence in the chaotic era over a single thought, and embark on a legendary journey... 210.4kReads9.6Score22.6kShelves
34. 34 骇EN Dread Night: Getting Rich in a Horror Game 骇夜：我在恐怖游戏里暴富 A-One Is Not A-Two阿一不是阿二Mystery706k WordsOngoing (The rating just came out and will rise later. Infinite flow + mild horror + original instances + no female lead) A tower stands in the eternal night, with a group of players trapped inside. They have to keep taking part in bizarre games to earn the food and supplies they need to survive. A killer in red embroidered shoes, a child with no eyes, a haunted mountain where an entire expedition team died... One deadly trap after another, with death around every corner. Players: “We're going to die, w 2.7MReads9.5Score578.2kShelves

    Reader note

    I feel like she's on par with Qi Xia.

35. 35 规 Rule Horror: I Am the Horror Story 规则怪谈：我即怪谈 Wish You Happiness祝你快乐呀Mystery1.8M WordsOngoing In 2017, supernatural tales descended upon Earth. Conventional weapons couldn't harm them, and humanity struggled to survive. Rule-based supernatural tales became humanity's last lifeline. Tens of thousands of chosen ones around the world were selected. If they won, the supernatural tales would vanish from reality. If they lost, the rule-based tales would descend upon the world. This was a war between humanity and the supernatural. Chen Shao, a patient suffering from bone cancer, became one of t 141.3kReads9.6Score18.5kShelves

    Reader note

    What are they all promoting? Isn't it supposed to be about high intelligence? The first book features a very smart, calm, and rational protagonist. The second book's protagonist, well, he's a character who grows, but not bad either. The third book hasn't been updated in so long I've almost forgotten about it, but it's not bad either. The fourth book, like the first, is extremely calm and rational, almost to the point of being beyond human comprehension; I feel this is the most impressive of these. The fifth book is also worth reading carefully.

36. 36 一 I Woke Up with 40 Murder Cases on My Hands 一觉醒来：我背上了40起命案 No Joy无喜Mystery1.0M WordsCompleted Chen Xiao wakes up to find everything around him strangely unfamiliar. The only thing beside him is a diary. He thinks it might explain his current predicament, but as he reads, he begins to doubt whether its contents are real. It is clearly a record of crimes committed by “himself.” Just as Chen Xiao is about to read on, the piercing wail of police sirens downstairs jolts him awake, and he can't help imagining the worst... 31kReads9.3Score3.2kShelves

    Reader note

    The first book is incredibly addictive; it's full of plot holes from the very beginning. The supporting characters don't seem to lose their minds, and sometimes you might feel like you can't keep up. The protagonist, the supporting characters, and even the reader all have a lot to think about (I don't recommend mindless reading, as it's easy to get confused). The second book needs little introduction; it's one of those books you have to reread multiple times to understand. The third book has foreshadowing and plot twists that are quite unexpected. It's full of open and covert struggles, and a grand scheme has been quietly laid out all along. The protagonist's reasoning is excellent (don't give up on the book just because it's a time-travel story!!! There will be twists later; it's not just a simple time-travel novel, and the supporting characters don't seem to lose their minds).

37. 37 人 I Have Dissociative Identity Disorder, and I Awaken an Unknown Sequence 人格分裂的我，觉醒未知序列 Bearing Guilt负辜Urban1.5M WordsCompleted (No harem, no female lead, no formulaic tropes, no System, no brainless decisions, twists, slow burn, sequences, ensemble cast, passionate, elegant high-IQ madman) [I think this world is fake. I want to witness the real world.] [By the time you read this, I'll be dead. But I will keep watching you from wherever I am!] [My name is Yang Feng. Feng as in maple, not as in crazy.] 17.5kReads8.4Score1.7kShelves

    Reader note

    [High IQ + No System + No Female Lead + Passionate Ensemble + Twists] The protagonist is a madman who orchestrates a kidnapping that spans multiple provinces in pursuit of the real world. After being reborn, he awakens the Sequence 19 ability, the Eye of Truth. The book is arguably the most strategic in the entire series, and you never know where the next twist will be.

38. 38 序EN Sequence: God Eater 序列：吃神者 No Brain, Just Cerebellum不要大脑要小脑Urban4.3M WordsOngoing [Tomato 2026 Male-Focused Fiction Most Popular Author, Ranked Number One] Published in print, quality guaranteed. An alternate high-martial world, ensemble cast and political intrigue, no nested plot twists, a slow-paced story with a grand setting. Readers all say it gets better the further you read. Giant birds swallow the sun, and all things undergo dramatic change. Strange, immortal gods, and humanity's superpowered sequences. Everyone wants to become a god in this world, but they have no ide 953.1kReads9.3Score114.9kShelves

    Reader note

    It's really good; it has a great grasp of human nature, and the protagonist has an extremely high IQ.

39. 39 我 I Started by Devouring Gods and Rose Against the Current 我从吃神开始反向晋升 Cool Isn't Cool酷是不酷Urban2.0M WordsOngoing [Urban high martial arts] [Ensemble cast] [No System] The gods descended upon the world, and the Ascenders appeared. At the age of eighteen, everyone can choose a unique path to godhood within the Ascension Tower. But Jiang Qi’s left eye is connected to a forbidden zone. Within the forbidden zone, he embarked on a strange path: he can ascend as long as he eats monsters. The world obtains everything from the Ascension Tower. And my ability is... [When I write the first sentence, the universe coll 237.9kReads9.1Score22.5kShelves
40. 40 暴 The Tyrant Tormented Me? I'll Turn Around, Seduce the Powerful Eunuch, and Seize His Empire 暴君虐我？转身勾搭权宦夺他江山 Green Mountain Has Its Say青山有辞Ancient Romance1.1M WordsCompleted For eight years in the palace, Xiangjun fought to get ahead and tried to please everyone, yet the palace’s noble masters still ground her down, used her, humiliated her, and cast her aside... Those nobles basked in all the wealth of the realm atop heaps of corpses and bones, yet mocked her for trying her hardest and not knowing her place. In the end, the child Xiangjun risked her life to bear called her enemy “Mother,” while Xiangjun was cut open alive so the baby could be taken from her. She di 117.5kReads9.6Score16.9kShelves

    Reader note

    Both of these are high-IQ, political intrigue type books. You can't say the first one isn't; rather, in the first one, I felt everyone was too cunning, there weren't any truly stupid people, making me feel like one wrong step would mean certain death. That sense of oppression. The author's writing is superb.

41. 41 她 She Just Wants to Lie Low, but They Keep Forcing Her to Rebel 她想咸鱼躺，非逼她造反 Warfires Stain All烽火尽染Ancient Romance1.8M WordsCompleted [Screen adaptation rights sold] Lu Songli transmigrated into a book and became the cannon-fodder first wife of Xie Zhan, the male lead of The Powerful Minister's Beautiful Young Second Wife. In the book, her friend Zhao Yutan, who returned in glory from a place of exile, would steal her husband. The two of them carried on behind her back while she was gravely ill, and their affair literally angered her to death. Lu Songli was about to roll up her sleeves and tear into the cheating scumbag and 109.7kReads9.5Score12.6kShelves
42. 42 路 An Extra's Guide to Surviving in a Comic 路人乙漫画生存指南 The Long Road Back South迢迢南归Modern Romance1.5M WordsCompleted Dropped by the author. You can go straight to the final three chapters. Male lead, no romance. Ensemble cast. Academy for people with special abilities. A year after the school arc of the comic Superpower Academy ended, the college arc finally began. It opened on September 1, with the main cast entering Supernova Academy for the Gifted. [The main cast ending up in Class F really is a classic] [That person in Class F must be a big shot] [The people in Classes S and A are so strong too] [What abou 25.1kReads9.5Score2.8kShelves
43. 43 无 Quick Transmigration: Taming Gods in Dark Fairy Tales 无限流：在暗黑童话里驭神 Pear Wine梨酒儿Two Male Leads538k WordsCompleted [Infinite Flow + Two Male Leads + Power Couple 1v1 + Mild Horror] He is the wicked “dark wizard” who tears the prince and princess apart in Sleeping Beauty. He is the evil “brother” who tries to take Cinderella’s place. He is the scheming “beauty” who lures the mermaid princess to her death. He is the top con artist everyone knows in the fairy-tale world. “I’ll never let you down when it comes to speaking ill of me.” The young man sits high upon his throne, facing the lights. Red thread winds ar 5.2kReads9.4Score868Shelves
44. 44 宠 He Spoiled His Concubine and Neglected His Wife. Reborn, I Broke Off My Engagement to the Scumbag and Married the Prince 宠妾灭妻，重生我退婚渣男嫁王爷 Zhi Zhi之知Ancient Romance640k WordsCompleted The physical book is available on all major platforms. Formerly titled Riding the Phoenix. [Reborn + Powerful Female Lead and Male Lead + Nation and World + Political Schemes] Before the age of seventeen, Shen Yu was the legitimate daughter of a military family who could wield a blade and charge into battle. After seventeen, she became the frail wife of Jiang Manor's Vice Minister Jiang. Her father and brothers died in battle, and the entire Shen family was honored for their loyalty. Bearing 93kReads9.5Score12.8kShelves

    Reader note

    The first book features a ruthless, resourceful, calm, and decisive female protagonist! A true daughter of a powerful minister! She wields power and influence! The second book is exceptionally well-written!! A must-read for avid readers!! This is a grand story of political intrigue and national duty! The sense of responsibility and mission borne by everyone in the story is truly moving! Moreover, both the male and female leads are very strong, deeply trust each other, and always prioritize the greater good!

45. 45 地 The Eighteen Levels of Hell: Lying is Forbidden Here 地狱十八层：这里禁止说谎 Two Liang of Plain Water二两白开Mystery2.3M WordsOngoing [No System, no power fantasy, no harem, no saintly protagonist. Mind games + wits and strategy + locked-room mysteries + deduction.] Chen Ran is a good person. He went to hell. This is the Tongue-Ripping Hell, where lying is forbidden, so everyone lies about their lies. Differences in how people believe lies should be handled gave rise to two major alliances. The Lie-Slayer Alliance: Lie, and you're killed instantly. The Strange-Tongue Alliance: Turn lies into the truth. A beginner's tutorial wi 78.3kReads9.1Score12.6kShelves

    Reader note

    These two books are truly the pinnacle of intellectual battles. Although the covers and titles aren't particularly appealing, they're definitely worth reading for anyone who enjoys intellectual battles.

46. 46 嫡 Secret Schemes 嫡谋 Yun Shiye云弑夜Ancient Romance1.5M WordsCompleted She was the Yun family’s eldest legitimate daughter, yet held in low regard by her family. Even the servants bullied her, and her mother couldn’t save her. When she woke once more, she was cold and cunning, her smile captivating all, her fury chilling the seas. Behind a kindly facade, she was the world’s greatest assassin, commanding the winds and clouds and ruling with power that reached the heavens! Now that the useless legitimate daughter has been reborn, everyone who hurt or tormented her wi 11.7kReads9.3Score1.1kShelves

    Reader note

    The protagonist is highly intelligent, and the villains don't lose their intelligence; the more you watch, the better it gets.

47. 47 贫 Just a Poor Rogue Cultivator. Why Are You Kneeling, Fellow Daoist? 贫穷散修一枚，道友何故下跪？ Knife, Medicine, Pen刀药笔Ancient Romance1.5M WordsCompleted [No romance, ensemble cast] [A goofy trio of wandering cultivators] [Female-led cultivation progression, few scenes involving children, skip if that bothers you] Song Li transmigrates into a cultivation novel as the evil female supporting character. After bullying the heroine, she is thrown by her own brother into the Abandoned Infant Pagoda, where she dies at the hands of countless vengeful infant spirits. Waking inside the pagoda, she looks at the crying spirits and says, “I can be your mother 32.8kReads9.4Score4.5kShelves

    Reader note

    The female lead is highly intelligent and plans everything meticulously. 🔥 This is a no-romance story with an ensemble cast. 🍅✨ The female lead is intelligent, strategic, ruthless, and resourceful, but not overly so. 🔥 The story revolves around a group of four friends who are both intelligent and powerful, rich but silly, and skilled but poor, plus a gloomy young man. I love stories like this about friends traveling together. 🌈 The author's writing is superb, the characters are well-developed, and some parts of the plot feel like a fast-paced game progression that doesn't drag on.

48. 48 官 The Road to Power: From Betrayal to Commanding the Storm 官路：从遭人背刺到执掌风云 The Legend of Brother Cao草哥的传说Urban1.0M WordsOngoing For love, Lu Xiuyuan hid his identity as the heir to a powerful family, rejected his family’s arrangements, and went to a small county town. He came first in the written exam and eagerly expected to land the position, only to be betrayed by his girlfriend, lose his place, and be mocked in public as a nobody with no connections. Fine. If that’s how it is, then I’ll stop pretending. From then on, the winds of change began to blow. The people who once humiliated him finally learned what it meant to 6.6kReads7.8Score606Shelves
49. 49 黄 A Dream of Huangliang: The Mad Heroine Hates Me to the Bone 黄粱一梦，疯批女主竟恨我入骨 Cowherd Boy of Lonely Mountain孤山放牛娃Eastern Fantasy4.1M WordsCompleted [Play the Pig to Eat the Tiger + Decisive and Ruthless + Cunning and Devious + Invincible Among His Peers] Ye Lingtian transmigrates into a romance-and-intrigue novel as the villainous Third Prince of Great Zhou. From the start, he’s supposed to marry the heroine, Feng Huojun? On their wedding night, the crazy heroine tries to kill me. The reason? She loves me to the point of obsession? As the poison-coated dagger sinks into my heart, I know I’m done for. This villain really doesn’t survive pa 71.4kReads8.8Score7.9kShelves

    Reader note

    ✨High IQ, planning ten steps ahead for every one you take. [Learned] This first book will show you the power of words! What it means to have flawless strategy! 🌟The second book is simply amazing. It's about outmaneuvering fate and winning against it.

50. 50 听 Heard His Senior Brother Was Going Down the Mountain, the Demon Ancestor Practiced Buddhist Teachings All Night 听说师兄要下山，魔祖连夜修佛法 I Just Love Bewitching Women就喜欢妖女Eastern Fantasy1.0M WordsCompleted Wang Huitian is a self-conscious man with no spiritual roots, yet his swordsmanship is divine. From the moment he leaves the mountain, the world knows no peace! Demon Ancestor: “What? He’s going down the mountain? Quick, bring me my kasaya!” Demon Clan: “Damn it, my son’s meat is tender. Hurry and hide him!” Forbidden Grounds: “We’re doing a deep clean today. Tomorrow, everyone must stay silent. Anyone who dares disobey will be thrown onto the mountain.” He demands a title from heaven and earth, 12.7kReads8.8Score1.3kShelves

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