Novels like The Forbidden Zone of the Living
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as The Forbidden Zone of the Living, best match first.
- 101 Daughter Village 女儿村 I was born in Daughter Village. For twenty years in a row, every child born in our village was a girl. Every nightfall, the cries of baby girls echoed through the valley. Once, a Taoist priest came to our village and said the entire village was cursed. During the summer of my first year of graduate school, my advisor ignored my protests and brought me and several other students to the village to conduct research. 10Reads—Score—14d adds
- 102 Folk Taboos and Strange Tales 民间禁忌怪谈 Ever since I was a kid, I thought my grandpa was strange. Whenever he had nothing to do, he liked to wander deep into the old forest. Then one day, he brought a little girl back from the woods, and I discovered the secret he was hiding. From then on, I tried to get away, but only became more deeply entangled... 667Reads8.3Score10014d adds
- 103 The Spirit-Suppressing Coffin 囚灵棺 I was curious about the coffin necklace around my boyfriend's neck. Before I could even touch it, he broke up with me on the spot. I complained about it to the viewers in my livestream, but then a fortune-telling streamer suddenly joined the call and warned me: “Break up with him right now. Your boyfriend is wearing a Spirit-Binding Coffin!” From that day on, eerie nightmares, a mysterious female ghost, and my boyfriend's secrets... One strange event after another began to unfold. Just when I th —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 104 The Haunted Inn 惊魂旅馆 An unexpected downpour drowned out the sounds of murder. Late at night, in a remote inn, a corpse lay sprawled across a bed, blood pouring from all seven orifices. The killer seemed to be hiding among the guests, none of whom trusted one another: a police officer, a writer, a psychiatrist, a celebrity, a fan, a college student... Every one of them had something to hide. After a second murder, the line between the dead and the living grew increasingly blurred. Everyone was a suspect, and everyone 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 105 Classroom of Despair 绝望教室 What began as a prank voting game set off a string of tragedies. One classmate after another died, yet the voting continued. I knew that maybe I would be the next one to die… 671Reads8.2Score—14d adds
- 106 Death on Delivery 死亡外卖 Never try to save money when ordering takeout! After ordering a meal that wasn't clean, strange events keep happening, and his coworkers begin dying one by one. Some takeout costs you money. Some takeout costs you your life. My other completed novel, The Hell Company, is over a million words long. Come check it out, dear readers~~ 2.4kReads8.7Score22614d adds
- 107 My Career in Funeral Services and the Supernatural 我的殡葬灵异生涯 After graduating, I joined the funeral industry and learned about its many secrets. I also encountered all kinds of terrifying, bizarre supernatural incidents. Let me tell you about some truly unusual tales of terror and the taboos of the funeral trade... The latest work by a free-spirited programmer. As always, the promise stands: suspense and horror taken to the extreme. 2.9kReads8.4Score24314d adds
- 108 Hearse 灵车 A hearse is a vehicle used to transport coffins or urns. You could also call it a vehicle exclusively for the dead. I was a bus driver for four years, and for all four years I kept a secret bottled up inside. Now I'll tell you firsthand about the terrifying things that happen on trains, things you don't know about. Maybe you've never heard of hearses being converted into buses, but the buses you've ridden may not have carried only the living... 1.5kReads8.0Score14114d adds
- 109 Fish Woman 鱼女 My father was a famous fisherman in the villages around us. Whenever he went out to sea, he always caught more fish than anyone else. He gutted countless live fish, scraped off their scales, and chopped off their heads. Then one day, he brought home a sea fish as tall as a person, and the entire village came to gawk. He turned down a merchant's offer to buy it, killed the fish himself, and put on a feast for the villagers, serving every part of it. The banquet lasted all night. The next day, the 51Reads—Score—14d adds
- 110 The Secret of Dad's Death 爸爸死亡的秘密 When I was seven, my dad died. An accident sent me back to the 24 hours before his death. I did everything I could to save him. But I never could have imagined it. This time, the one who killed my dad was... —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 111 The Real Lunatic and the Fake Patient 真疯子假病人 In my dream, I thought it was nothing more than a dream. But when I woke up, someone beside me was lying on the ground, clutching their arm and crying out in pain. Now, I've dreamed of the crime scene once again. 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 112 Lover in a False World 虚假世界的爱人 My wife has been acting strangely lately. She keeps pestering me, saying she wants me to stay by her side forever. I can't help finding it a little funny. "Of course I'll stay by your side forever and ever, honey." But whenever she hears me say that, her body stiffens noticeably. Then she goes back to her room alone and locks the door. No matter how I try to coax her from outside, she refuses to open it. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 113 Longevity Soup 长寿汤 When I was little, Liu Laoer’s family in the village made a living selling goat-horn powder. The powder came from the horns of female goats. Though those horns were short and slender, Liu Laoer would skin and butcher female goats alive right after they gave birth. Then he would cut off their horns and grind them into powder. He would add the powder to soup made with freshly slaughtered lamb. They said drinking it regularly could help you live a long life. 16Reads—Score—14d adds
- 114 Folk Horror Taboos 民间恐怖禁忌 Do you know the stories old people tell? Do you know there are many things in folk tradition that people say must not be spoken of? Do you know what the elders say about dreams? The elders say there are things you mustn't talk about at night. Did you know that? 121Reads6.3Score—14d adds
- 115 The People Around Me and I Had the Same Dream 我和周围人做了一样的梦 I knew I was dreaming, but everything in the dream was strange. When I woke up, I discovered that my coworkers and I had all shared the same dream. It turned out to be a monster's trap. 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 116 An Unremarkable Jumping Death Case 不起眼的跳楼案 My fiancé, who had been overseas for three years, called to tell me he was coming back the day after tomorrow. I went to meet him at the airport. On the way home, he proposed, and I said yes. But this morning, he disappeared again, because I had once more returned to the day he called me. I've already relived these three days seven times. 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 117 The Life-Extending Money 借寿钱 After a friend dies in a bizarre car accident, could a hundred-yuan bill inscribed with “Borrow your years to buy my life” really be a deadly curse? At the funeral home, he uses “life-borrowing money” to buy an urn, only to be haunted by the dead man's mother in a strange way. A talisman hides a sinister plot, and three life-borrowing bills appear out of nowhere at midnight! A locked kitchen, boiling water, knives falling for no reason... Who is controlling this deadly game? 273Reads—Score314d adds
- 118 Paranormal Encounters: What I Saw and Heard 灵异事件之所见所闻 No System + no transmigration + no power fantasy + no harem + no invincible protagonist + no sweet romance + no clichés + no female lead + no cultivation. Important notice: if this isn’t for you, don’t read it. If this isn’t for you, don’t read it. If this isn’t for you, don’t read it! Do you believe there are things in this world that science cannot explain? Have you ever experienced anything supernatural yourself? Treat the events in this novel as stories, and remember: Fear and respect the sp 129Reads—Score—14d adds
- 119 The Soul-Summoning Lantern 招魂灯 The Soul-Summoning Lantern 20Reads—Score—14d adds
- 120 The Haunted Inn 恐怖旅店 A new graduate faces the toughest job market in years and, with no other options, applies for a night receptionist position at an inn. On my first day, I was told that the job had two requirements. First, I must not speak to the guests. Second, I must not leave the front desk. 512Reads8.0Score10314d adds
- 121 The Ghost King Is Sealed Inside Me, Yet I’m a Good-for-Nothing 体内封印鬼王，我却是个废柴 A rainy night in a cemetery, a man-eating black cat, a man searching for his late daughter, a school guard hanged on the stairs, a wedding coffin sealed with red paper, a grotesque face hiding in a mirror... What secrets lie behind it all? What other mysterious events will Wang Shier, the gravekeeper, have to face? As terror and dread slowly close in, those secrets seem to be steering his fate. (The stories in this book are all adapted from real events. If anything sounds familiar, it is pure co 7Reads6.4Score—14d adds
- 122 The Death Inn 死亡民宿 On the first night after checking into the guesthouse, the owner died. But at midnight that same night, Lu Shou actually received a text from the owner. “Please be sure to follow the rules of the Deerhorn Guesthouse. Find the landlady’s dowry box before five tomorrow morning, and you can leave with the deputy manager, an orange cat.” “Otherwise, you’ll be stuck here forever.” Lu Shou broke out in a cold sweat, utterly baffled. “I clearly took his phone. How can he still text me?” —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 123 The Coffin Walks at Night 灵棺夜行 I was carrying a coffin up the mountain for a burial when they stuffed me inside and buried me alive. Then, in a single night, all three hundred or so people in the village vanished. Only at night was the place alive with voices. I crawled out of the coffin, only to discover... 5.7kReads8.2Score37314d adds
- 124 The Silent Echo 沉默的回声 Five years ago, in Room 601 of Ningchuan High School, a girl was found hanged from a bathroom pipe. Her eyes bulged, her tongue was missing, and strange words had been written in blood on the mirror: “He… is back.” Five years later, the sealed cold case was suddenly reopened. Trainee criminal investigator Qin Chuan took over the investigation, never expecting that this bizarre murder would also uncover another buried case: the “South Campus Disappearance.” A deadly game of hunting, lying dormant 57Reads—Score—14d adds
- 125 The Horror Night-Duty Booth 恐怖值班亭 Back around the 2000s, I worked as a security guard at an apartment complex. The complex had a strange rule: [After midnight, do not leave the security booth.] It made no sense, but I always kept it in mind, until the day one of my coworkers died! That night, a woman in a skirt knocked on the security booth window… 31Reads—Score114d adds
- 126 After I Lost My Memory, a Woman Just Like Me Appeared at Home 失忆后，家里出现和我一模一样的女人 I've lost my memory. Since then, people have kept showing me all kinds of evidence and implanting all sorts of memories in my mind. But I feel like an outsider looking in on my own past, unable to relate to any of it. One day, I came home and found a woman fast asleep on the sofa. What terrified me was that she looked exactly like me! 8Reads—Score—14d adds
- 127 Paper Bride 纸新娘 Rumor has it that I tried to seduce the Lin family's young master, failed, and then killed him in the village's paper-offering shop. To save my life, I agreed to marry Master Lin, who had raised me for ten years. On our wedding day, Master Lin laid his hands on me. "Darling, did you know I've wanted you for many years?" Of course I knew. I'd been looking forward to this day even longer than he had. 15Reads—Score—14d adds
- 128 Crimson Wish 绯红之愿 I bought a cursed object, hoping to summon a ghost and make a pact with her so I could go to the Ghost City and find out what happened to my missing master. The summoning went unusually smoothly, but the moment she appeared, the powerful yin energy pouring out of the magic circle sent me flying several meters and knocked me to the ground. She stood quietly in the middle of the circle, dressed in a bright red bridal gown and phoenix crown, with her red veil neatly covering her head and her hands —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 129 Summer Vacation of Terror 暑假惊魂记 I can see things other people can't. I've never let it show. I didn't want anyone to think I was a freak. Until that summer vacation... Two classmates and I made plans to go swimming. I saw something in the water. I was terrified. But they insisted on going in, and I couldn't stop them... —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 130 The Secret of Chaoxiao 朝校的秘密 In the village where my family lives, every household's first child has to be a girl. The day after their tenth birthday, these girls are sent to a place called Chaoxiao on the other side of the mountain. They say it's a paradise for girls. That is, until a black cat appeared in the village. 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 131 The Secret of Chongcao Village 虫草村的秘密 “The cordyceps we raise are so fast, you can’t even catch them.” I was watching this funny video on a certain short-video app. Comments flew across the screen. Some people said the joke was hilarious, while others earnestly explained that cordyceps couldn’t possibly run fast. But I knew the joke wasn’t funny at all, because I had seen fast-running cordyceps myself. Perhaps “rabbit cordyceps” would be a more fitting name. 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 132 Huizhu Village 慧猪村 My college roommate claimed she came from an ancient village called Huizhu Village. She said the village got its name because, from ancient times to the present, it had produced many high-ranking officials and top scholars, as if its villagers were born with pearls of wisdom. It wasn’t until she talked the rest of us in the dorm into visiting her village around the Qingming Festival that I learned it was actually called “Wise Pig Village.” —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 133 The Doll Grows Cold 人偶失温 Everyone says I must have done something virtuous in a past life for Qin Chuan to choose me. Only I know that's not the case. He married me because he wanted me dead. 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 134 The Village of Terrifying Women 恐怖女人村 The women were so beautiful they were a feast for the eyes, yet they would not even let the men touch their hands. At first, I thought it was a feudal custom. As it turned out, it was part of a terrifying conspiracy. In this dark chapter of history, human nature erupted and was snuffed out again and again, without end. 412Reads8.5Score10714d adds
- 135 The One-Yuan Villa 一元别墅 Never believe that a windfall will fall from the sky. At 28, I was “hit” by a villa, but I don't have much time left. Now I have to find my next heir. 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 136 The Living Dead Bring Fortune 活尸送财 One a day. For the past three months, the overpowering stench of blood and rot in Qi Lao San's incense hall had never let up. The fouler the stench, the more people came. Zhao Er, who had lost his manhood, buried his father in the hills behind the village so he could enter the incense hall. It was all started by the village chief, who chopped his own daughter-in-law into pieces. Today, it was Li Si's turn. Qi Lao San pointed his pipe toward the incense hall. “Go on in.” —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 137 The Lost Soul 失魂之人 After a car accident left Han Jin in a coma, he woke to find himself out of his body, wandering between the realms of yin and yang. His memories from before the accident had vanished, too! To return to his body, he went back to the accident scene, only to discover that someone had tried to murder him! His missing memories, the mystery of his disembodied soul, the secret of extending his life... Whose plot lies behind it all? 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 138 Inferior Humanity 劣等人性 Liu Kai and several of his friends came down with a mysterious illness. Their skin rotted, but no camera could capture evidence of it, and hospital tests showed nothing wrong! Everything was deeply unsettling. By chance, he found a mysterious shop run by a shamanic practitioner and acquired a pig-headed, human-bodied figurine. His illness eased, but when his friends betrayed him, he suffered an even more terrible backlash! This disaster, which seemed like a strange illness, actually stemmed from 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 139 My Team Leader Tried to Psych Me Out, So I Sent Him Back to the Village as a Sacrifice 组长想要PUA我，我把他送回村里当祭品 When I left the village, the High Priest hung a fish-shaped jade pendant around my neck. The High Priest said that if I wore it, I would never get lost. I’m descended from the guardians of the spring at the Loulan ruins. The Moon Spring is my beacon home. Why would I need a jade pendant? Back then, I didn’t understand, and the High Priest didn’t explain. Not until later, when I met him. 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 140 A Shocking Murder Plot 惊天杀局 There’s a corner in the police station’s archives where files on unsolved and bizarre cases are kept. [The Headless Corpse Case] [The Water Ghost Murder Case] [The Grinning Case] None of the above happened to me. They’re my stories. 248Reads—Score414d adds
- 141 The Killer Elevator 夺命电梯 10:30 p.m. A “friendly reminder” that popped up in the residents’ group chat jolted me wide awake. [Midnight Elevator Safety Notice...] Auntie Wang next door scoffed. “Quit with the spooky nonsense!” Then, late that night, she went out to take the trash, and a scream ripped through the silence... 31Reads—Score—14d adds
- 142 After Licking the Neighborhood, My Husband Turned into a Monster 丈夫舔过小区之后，变成了怪物 I posted a missing-husband notice at the entrance to the residential compound. “Missing husband: Zhang Jianguo, two meters tall, recently developed a taste for licking...” The post made everyone laugh. Who still turns a missing-person notice into a joke these days? But after surveillance footage surfaced of our neighbor in Unit 905 being disemboweled, they finally started to feel afraid. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 143 My Mother-in-Law's Secret Baby-Making Soup 婆婆的秘密生子汤 Before the Qingming Festival, my mother-in-law went looking for a folk remedy. They said drinking it for a month would help me get pregnant. But during the days she forced me to drink it, there was always a woman standing not far away. As time went on and the day drew closer, a friend from work finally told me I was being haunted because I’d taken something that belonged to someone else. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 144 The Hunted “Dead Man” 被追杀的 “已死之人” At 2:47 a.m., I was curled up in a forest in the middle of nowhere. My companions’ screams rang in my ears, and Lin Peng’s blood still clung to my palm. Just seven hours earlier, we’d been laughing and chatting as we drove along in a Corolla, until a face covered in blood flashed in front of the car. It was unmistakably Wang Xuechun, who had been sitting in the back seat. There were no bodies and no signal. Only four shadowy figures stood before the gravestones in the cemetery, staring straight —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 145 The 1001 Nights of Killing My Lover 杀死爱人的1001夜 In the middle of the night, someone knocked at the door. I opened it. A strange man stood outside. He asked me a question. “Darling, do you know what day it is today?” I froze in place. In an instant, a dagger plunged into my heart. “You really forgot. Damn you.” I was lying in bed when my eyes suddenly flew open. I touched my chest. It had only been a dream. Relieved, I scrolled on my phone for a while. When sleep finally came over me, I rolled over, ready to drift off again. That was when some 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 146 Don't Live in a House Where Someone Has Died 不要住在死过人的房子里 The man on the phone said his girlfriend was dead, but the rental agent said he’d been executed by firing squad two years ago. The night I moved into the haunted house, the black landline rang right on schedule at midnight. Zhang Jian cried over the phone, saying he wanted to see Han Chunyan. Yet through the peephole, I clearly saw a long-haired woman in a denim jacket standing outside. Blood was still seeping from the knife wound on the back of her neck. The rental agent, Zhao Shuang, texted me 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 147 Don't Build a Land Temple on a Whim 不要随便修建土地庙 I watched with my own eyes as Bian Guoshun smashed the Earth God statue with his head, while blood seeped in rivulets from its base. On the night the village built the temple in 1986, everyone heard knocking at their doors. Not with a hand, but with a head. Li Duyan said the temple had been built over a vein of evil energy, but no one believed him. Not until the Bai family’s boy started banging his forehead against the wall in the middle of the night, and Bian Guoshun was tied to a century-old w —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 148 A Deadly Sense of Ceremony 致命的仪式感 I’m the full-time housewife everyone envies. I never lift a finger around the house. I wake up to spend money and close my eyes to beauty treatments. And I have a handsome, wealthy husband who takes care of my every need. Even my best friend says I must have the luckiest ancestors in the world to be this fortunate. But the truth is, the person sharing my bed isn’t my husband at all. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 149 Beauty Balm 美人膏 I'm a matchmaker who specializes in training men for rich women. Men talk about “self-respect,” but once they become kept men, they'll still do whatever it takes to cling to their rich benefactors. Lately, my husband has started paying more attention to his looks, but he doesn't know that he has very thick eyelids. Very thick. That's exactly what those rich women like to feast on. 32Reads—Score114d adds
- 150 Whispers by the Candlelit Ruins 幽庭烛烬语 In the dead of night, countless eerie secrets lurk in the dark folds of the city. The knocking in an old apartment, known as “Knocking at Midnight,” rings out like clockwork at three in the morning. When a woman living alone peers through the peephole, all she sees is a roiling cloud of scarlet blood mist in the hallway, while a damp scratching comes from the doorknob. In the basement of a century-old apothecary, “Whispers in the Medicine Crock” never cease, day or night. Every night at midnight 3Reads—Score—14d adds
