Novels like A Book by Black Shackles
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as A Book by Black Shackles, best match first.
- 101 My Years as a Cardsharp 我当老千的那些年 Nine out of ten gambling games are rigged. The cheat plays to carve out a way to survive for himself, while dealing others a losing hand. Step into the world of the Thousand Gate and grudges run deep. The ways of the world reveal people's true hearts. Goodness and kindness were the original intentions, but alas, the ways of the world leave their mark. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 102 I Roam Jianghu with Fortune-Telling, Seeing Through Hearts and Breaking Deadlocks 我靠算命闯江湖，看透人心破死局 [Period Mystery + Jianghu Secrets and Arts + Wits and Schemes + A Battle of Human Nature + Underdog's Rise + No System] In 2002, I was twenty years old, yet everyone within ten li addressed me respectfully as "Mr. Chen." When the village Party secretary married off his son, he came to me to pick an auspicious date. When a pig farmer lost a pig, he came to ask me where to look. Then one day, the town mayor's wife knelt outside my house, begging me to divine the whereabouts of her missing daughter 10Reads—Score—14d adds
- 103 Tales of a Con Artist 老千故事 Su Qing challenges the legendary gambler Mei Luo, hoping to avoid falling into someone else's trap. But her actions lead to her father's tragic death, and Su Qing herself is left in grave danger. After repeatedly risking her life, she sees the good and evil, and the injustices, in the world. To survive and avenge her father, Su Qing pushes herself to the limit again and again, ultimately escaping death by a hair. 151Reads—Score1214d adds
- 104 Master of Illusions 幻戏师 Traditional Illusion Arts × Urban Underworld × Psychological Trickery × Deadly Protection [A Cure for a Reading Slump] This isn't a mindless power fantasy, and the villains aren't idiots! Every illusion is a life-or-death gamble, and every act of trust is a knife to the heart. From the sole survivor of a family massacre to a “fixer,” how does someone walking a tightrope between rules and human nature become the one who makes the rules? “They taught me that magic tricks fool the eyes. My dad said —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 105 My Years Catching Cheaters at Cards 我抓老千的那些年 In gambling, deception, conflict, and traps cost more than just money. They can take away time, family bonds, humanity, and all the beautiful things we mourn losing. 248Reads8.3Score2014d adds
- 106 My Stories of Macau's Stormy Underworld 我的澳门风云故事 Once you've been to Macau, it's yours for life! What kind of city is A-Ma-Gau? Why are so many people obsessed with it? What kind of tumultuous life awaits a naive young woman who ventures into Macau alone? Here, stories unfold every day, and miracles happen every day. In these most authentic stories, you'll see human nature at its rawest, the most insatiable desires, and the cheapest emotions. Welcome to my life in Macau. 26kReads8.9Score1.7k14d adds
- 107 A Bull on the Rise 牛冲天 My dad was a king of the battlefield in the Vietnam War and a national second-class merit award recipient. In 1989, something happened to him while he was home on leave. He escaped after being surrounded and pursued by eighty plainclothes detectives. The authorities never said what he was guilty of, and rumors said he was either a master thief or a defector. I was the only one who believed he was a good man, because he told me he was someone I could be proud of, and I believed him. I was eight t 57Reads—Score—14d adds
- 108 Those Years I Spent Running with the Wrong Crowd 我混社会那一些年 As you wander the martial world, what kind of cunning, scheming, and vision do you need? As a child, I feared ghosts because they were hideous and terrifying. As an adult, I fear people because they look so respectable. This story is a reminder to everyone: Nine out of ten gambling games are rigged. The only way to win is not to gamble! 18.3kReads8.9Score1.5k14d adds
- 109 Golden Eyes: Appraising Treasures and Gambling on Jade 鉴宝赌石黄金瞳 [Stone Gambling + Antiques Appraisal + Golden Eyes + X-Ray Vision + Underdog’s Rise + Power Fantasy] Ye Long works at an antique shop. By chance, a tiny sword inside a bronze lock shoots him, and when he wakes, he has a pair of golden eyes that can see through things and distinguish genuine antiques from fakes. From then on, he has an uncanny knack for appraising treasures and gambling on stones, making waves wherever he goes. Money, beautiful women, and power are all within reach as he rises to 86Reads—Score—14d adds
- 110 The Book of Nighttime Tales 夜谈万象书 Sand and Stars At the far end of Baghdad's busiest market lived a young woman named Layla. Her father was a poor carpet weaver, and her mother had died of an illness when Layla was ten, leaving behind only an old loom and a chest full of unfinished, colorful silk threads. Layla rose before dawn each day to help her father with the household chores. Once he had left for the day, she would sit at the loom and use the threads her mother had left behind to weave one vibrant dream after another. As 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 111 Thirty Years in the Jianghu (Seven-Volume Set) 江湖三十年（全七册） Dai Gou spent his life roaming the martial world. Over several decades, he witnessed all kinds of scams and cons. In his later years, he gave up that life and revealed its tricks and rules to the world, hoping to keep future generations from being swindled. These scams include human trafficking, fortune-telling, artificially aging antiques, theft, card sharping, beggar gangs, cheating at games, confidence schemes, and honey traps... After decades of hard knocks, Dai Gou finally became the boss o 4.3kReads9.6Score76314d adds
- 112 Flawless Blood Jade 血玉无瑕 One cut can leave you broke, the next can make you rich; one cut can have you wearing sackcloth! Those words capture all the vicissitudes and legends of the jade gambling world. I got into jade gambling because of my third uncle. I hate him, but I'm grateful to him too. 65Reads8.8Score—14d adds
- 113 Making Money on the Side! 捞偏门！ [After graduating from college, I went from a shady fortune-teller to a political fixer] This book pulls back the curtain on political fixers, giving you an in-depth look at the scams hidden from view in both the underworld and the corridors of power. “Do you think officials are all fools? They know I’m a con artist. They just happen to need a con artist like me to do things for them.” 9.9kReads8.9Score1.5k14d adds
- 114 The Dashing Gambler 风流赌神 Synopsis: [Not a System novel, please don't complain if it's not for you] [High-stakes gambling] [Stories from the bathhouse] [Everyday scams and fraud] [Male lead grows from weak to strong + gives back to society] Chen Zhongchuan is an abandoned orphan, raised by his grandfather from childhood. When he boards the train to Nanshan, his grandfather tells him the truth... This book explores gambling and the many scams found in real life, warning readers to stay away from gambling. At best, it can 3kReads8.8Score23914d adds
- 115 Fortunes Rise in Macau, but the Road to Wealth Is a Little Rocky 风起澳门，暴富的道路有点坑 I was doing all right in the human world. Then, out of nowhere, I was dragged up to heaven, only to be kicked straight down into hell. Now I'm in hell, but my heart is in heaven. Going back to the human world is nothing but a distant dream... Gamblers want to win, but casinos don't want to lose either. In this vast world, people of every kind are busy, all scheming and calculating. A mountain is a mountain, and water is water. Then a mountain is no longer a mountain, and water is no longer water 6.7kReads8.9Score38514d adds
- 116 Setting the Trap 做局 A mastermind uses the martial world as a game board and people as pawns. Those drawn into the game are at their mercy. My grandfather was a Feng Shui master and a master schemer, yet he died after a charlatan set him up. My father was killed, my mother took her own life after being humiliated, and I ended up in prison. To avenge my family, I joined the Golden Sect and became a charlatan myself, rising to become a master strategist. I’ve set countless schemes in my life. Living schemes and deadly 16.9kReads9.1Score1.8k14d adds
- 117 The Crooked Path 走偏门 [Adapted into the short dramas Fishing in the Shadows, Taking the Crooked Path, and The Mastermind; and the animated dramas Fishing in the Shadows: Drifting North, A Crooked Road to Comeback, A Thousand Faces in the Underworld, and Tales of a Shady Deal. Check them out if you’re interested.] What is the crooked path? Those who walk it seek a way to survive for themselves and plot certain doom for others. Once you step onto this path, it stretches as deep as the sea. You’ll roam far and wide, mix 23.7kReads9.1Score3.7k14d adds
- 118 The Wild Monk’s Ill-Fated Romance 野和尚的孽缘 A mysterious ancient temple is home to a Buddhist monk who cultivates immortality. The monk is devastatingly handsome and only eighteen, yet every few days, top beauties, young ladies, and even princesses come to pay him a visit... The outside world calls him the "Qingyun Master," while the people of the mysterious tribe call him the "Wild Monk"... 2.6kReads—Score31014d adds
- 119 China's History: So Addictive You'll Read It in One Sitting, Volume 2 一读就上瘾的中国史2 This is an era of great upheaval, when nations and individuals alike face unprecedented change. Some cling to life, while others face death without fear; Some see darkness, while others see light; Some defend their honor, while others cast aside their dignity. A History of China That Gets You Hooked, Volume 2, looks back at the great turning points in history: Zhang Qian's mission to the Western Regions, Li Shimin unifying the realm and becoming the Heavenly Khan, Zheng He's seven voyages to the 719Reads9.7Score31714d adds
- 120 Bloodshed in the Black Abyss 黑渊血戮 (Realistic + Period Setting + Underworld + Political Battles) What is the underworld? It is an endless abyss. Once you take a single step into it, you’ll be trapped forever, with no way out. To make a name for yourself in the underworld, you have to be ready to end up dead in the street or locked away for life at any moment. Now, let me take you back to the late 1980s and show you how the son of a worker gets dragged into this dark abyss and rises step by step to become a crime boss of his era. 898Reads—Score—14d adds
- 121 The Allure of Darkness 黑色之诱惑 By chance, Xia Xue’er steps into a casino and catches a fleeting glimpse of Chen Feng, the underworld boss. It proves to be a trap laid by fate. From then on, she is seized by the demon of gambling and takes one step after another toward the abyss of crime. The curtain rises on her tragic life… 11.7kReads9.4Score99414d adds
- 122 When Daylight Ends, the Killing Begins 昼尽而杀 Hong Kong, 1994. Three kingpins, two gangs, police officers, wealthy businessmen, officials, the media, hostesses, assassins, and ordinary people are all caught up in power struggles amid the surging tides of the times. No one can escape, and no one can hide. Fate is never in our own hands. Whether your eyes are open or shut, when night falls, people die. 33Reads—Score—14d adds
- 123 A Little Tomb Raider from the Northern School 北派小小盗墓贼 [Tomb raiding + mystery + treasure appraisal] [First person!] There are no ghosts here, only one Wang's adventures in the underworld. In the early 21st century, I was struggling to make ends meet when I met an old man on Antique Street. Listening to him brag was what got me into tomb raiding. I once ended up a beggar, spent time on the wrong side of the law, and even made a name for myself in the tomb-raiding business. Grab a seat, everyone, and listen as I tell you some old stories from the und 2.7kReads7.7Score22414d adds
- 124 Is There No Law? I Can See Through Everything, So I Look Wherever I Want! 没王法，顶着透视眼乱看！ [Stone gambling + antiques appraisal + X-ray vision + settling scores on the spot + ruthless and decisive + underdog comeback + stress relief] Xiao Yang is a deliveryman who gains X-ray vision after a thug ambushes him and injures his head while he's helping a beauty catch her cheating boyfriend in the act. From then on, he turns his life around, gaining money, beautiful women, luxury cars, mansions, and power... [This is a feel-good underdog comeback story. If it doesn't make you happy, come fi 7.6kReads7.9Score89314d adds
- 125 The Immortal Emperor Returns 仙帝归来 Falsely imprisoned and wrongfully killed, he ascends to the rank of Immortal Emperor three thousand years later! After exhausting his cultivation to finally return to Earth, Chu Xun is reborn with a vengeance, back in the prison on the eve of his unjust death! Those who tormented and humiliated me in my past life will pay for it! Thus begins the rise of an Immortal Emperor bent on revenge. He gets out of prison, enters the city, and makes his way through its glamorous underworld! He walks a bloo 243Reads8.9Score20914d adds
- 126 Southwest Storm: Turmoil on the Black Sea 西南风云：黑海沉浮 When I was eighteen, I met someone who led me down a certain path. Some describe this path with the idealistic word “jianghu.” But the jianghu you actually find yourself in is better summed up by a rather funny saying: “After all this time, I’ve made no friends, only learned lessons.” My name is Lin Dongxia, and I’ve learned my fair share of lessons. 33kReads9.3Score3.2k14d adds
- 127 The Common Man's Comeback 匹夫的逆袭 A veteran cop with a terminal illness makes one last stand. A private detective will stop at nothing for baby formula and mortgage payments. And a mysterious killer who refuses to stay dead is closing in. All three parties are after an older man and a young girl living in a rental on the outskirts of the city. On the evening before a torrential storm, everyone stands at a crossroads of fate. Who is an ally, and who is an enemy? Should they accept their deaths, or turn the tables against all odds 36.3kReads9.3Score4.4k14d adds
- 128 Identity in the Mirror 惊悚之镜中身份 A Terrifying Identity in the Mirror —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 129 I Have a Self-Healing Ability 我有一个自愈能力 [Transmigration] + [Another World] + [Special Ability] When Lu Xun wakes up, he thinks someone has pranked him and put him on a film set. But it seems he has transmigrated into another person’s body! Since he’s a transmigrator, having a System would be perfectly normal, right? He calls out for one, but it turns out he doesn’t have a golden finger. Damn it! What a disaster. But as time goes by, it seems he really does have a special ability... Decades later, his childhood friend sees him and excl 48Reads—Score214d adds
- 130 The Day I Divorced, I Became the Heir to a Fortune 离婚当天，我成了首富继承人 The Day I Divorced, I Became the Heir to a Fortune 23Reads—Score—14d adds
- 131 In a Chaotic Age, the Mohists Take Up Arms to Protect the People 乱世墨者持器守苍生 In a chaotic age, a Mohist wields his weapon to protect all living beings. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 132 Unorthodox Remedies of the Martial World 江湖偏方 My name is Zhang Chen. A fortune-teller said I was born with a knack for unexpected riches and would never stay on the straight and narrow. But I don’t care. In this world, people who follow the rules get leftovers, while the bold get to eat meat. I haven’t had much schooling, and I don’t understand lofty principles, but I do know this: you only win if you’re willing to fight. 62.1kReads8.9Score7k14d adds
- 133 Stone Gambling: I Was Scammed Out of My Entire Ten Million Fortune from the Start 赌石：从开局被骗光千万身价开始 [Underdog's Rise + Invincible + Treasure Appraisal + Stone Gambling + Feel-Good Story + Bargain Hunting] Those who walk by the river often enough are bound to get their shoes wet. Chen Rang trusted his friend too much and was cheated out of his entire fortune, worth tens of millions, leaving him buried in debt. He once thought about ending it all, but when he thought of all the friends who still believed in him, he chose to stay alive and pay them back. To clear his debts, he has to start from z 226Reads7.4Score6614d adds
- 134 Golden Eyes: A Midlife Comeback 黄金瞳：中年逆袭 This book's animated adaptation is now streaming on Fanqie. At 45, Lin Jianguo was a failed middle-aged man, the sort you could find anywhere in the city. He had been unemployed for three years. His wife had lost all hope and was about to divorce him, his daughter had no money for tuition, his mortgage payments were overdue, and his parents were bedridden. At the lowest point in his life, he unexpectedly awakened the Golden Eyes ability inside his family's ancestral jade pendant, allowing him to 1.5kReads7.0Score20914d adds
- 135 The Jianghu: What Is It, Really? 江湖，到底是什么？ [Pure Underworld] [The Jianghu of the 1980s] Where there are people, there are grudges; where there are grudges, there is a jianghu; people are the jianghu! It used to be called the jianghu, but now it's called society! When the storms had passed, Lang Aowen knelt once more before the sacred image of Guan Yu, holding three sticks of incense high above his head. Only one question remained in his heart: The jianghu, what exactly is it? [Serious Warning: The characters and plot in this book are 1.7kReads—Score10114d adds
- 136 The Night of the Slaughter at the Abandoned Water Station: I'm the Only Survivor! 废弃水站屠杀夜，活着的只有我！ On the night of the massacre at the abandoned water station, I was the only one left alive! —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 137 I Can Decipher All Things After I Die 我死后破解万物 In his third year of the apocalypse, Chen Bugu finally used his myth-class ability, [Resurrection], for the first time. Yes, he died. But something went wrong. Instead of coming back to life, he was reborn before it all began. When he awakened the [Resurrection] ability again, he was forbidden from using it to resurrect himself repeatedly. This time, the ability he awakened was the unheard-of virus-class ability, [Crack]. “A thief stole a divine power and secretly forged it into the seed of a vi 5.4kReads8.3Score50814d adds
- 138 My Name Is Zhou Tang 我叫周唐 After a series of extraordinary encounters, the male lead keeps growing stronger, transforming from a complete novice into an invincible powerhouse. The struggles between the various schools of thought in ancient China continue on an alien world. The male lead unites them all, then changes the course of Earth's civilization. 10Reads—Score—14d adds
- 139 Struggling in Soviet Russia 奋斗在苏俄 A soul that had transmigrated wandered through the Soviet Union of the 1940s. Beneath the uniform of the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs lay countless stories... 269Reads9.4Score—14d adds
- 140 The Number One Brother 一哥 The short drama A Brother is now streaming on Hongguo, with a surprise in store! I used to be a gang boss. Now I’m just a food delivery rider. Ever since I could remember, my father, a former soldier, had been a drunk with a nasty temper. Whenever he got drunk, he liked to beat my mother, often leaving her black and blue. Later, my parents divorced, and while trying to earn money for tuition, I went astray! I had no choice back then. Now, I just want to be a good person! 32.1kReads9.3Score1.7k14d adds
- 141 The Reaper's End 死神的终焉 [Death] is undoubtedly the [enemy] of [humanity], an [existence] that must be wiped out. And the [Bleach] are even more so... But [humanity] can't do it. Because only an equally powerful [god] can kill a [Bleach]. But what if... what if the [Bleach]... No, that's not right. What if [Death] itself longs to die? "Gods of the future... My name is [Ye Li]. I am an 'ordinary' [Bleach]. Perhaps I was lucky, or perhaps unlucky. I witnessed everything." "Everything has gone mad... [humanity] has gone ma 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 142 Urban Cultivation: My Gorgeous Campus Belle 都市修仙之我的绝色校花 To cover my tuition, I take a high-paying job from campus beauty Chu Yuyan: pretend to be her boyfriend and fend off her many admirers. I think I’m just there to act as a shield, but she doesn’t know that I inherited an ancient immortal legacy. I’m the only cultivator in this city. A bothersome rich kid? One spell, and his family is bankrupt. An arrogant martial arts prodigy? One finger technique, and thirty years of training go up in smoke. I only wanted to cultivate in peace, but trouble keeps 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 143 I Transmigrated as Lin Chong, So Why Keep Putting Up With This?! 穿越成林冲，还忍气吞声干嘛！ “Shui Hu” means “by the waters.” It alludes to people being driven to the brink, with their backs to the wall, forced to do whatever it takes to survive. That is “Shui Hu.” As the saying goes: Traitorous ministers bring calamity to the land; Heroes are driven to gather in the mountains. When blades and spears fly, the people suffer; Thus begins the tale of Shui Hu. When Lin Chong of the new century transmigrates into the Leopard Head at Duanjin Pavilion, he will no longer be taken in by Wu Yong 118Reads—Score—14d adds
- 144 Tales of Liangzhou: Underworld Turmoil 梁州往事之黑道风云 The jianghu has never been just about fighting. It is about navigating human relationships and weighing the pros and cons. After years moving through the gray areas, I have seen the warmth and coldness of human nature, and witnessed betrayal and scheming time and again. With no one to rely on in my youth, I endured a bitter, hard life. Some took a wrong turn and ended up behind bars, their lives ruined before they were halfway through. I clawed my way up from the very bottom of society, swallowi 141Reads6.3Score—14d adds
- 145 Stone Gambling, Treasure Appraisal, and the Golden Eyes 赌石鉴宝黄金瞳 [Stone gambling + antique appraisal + X-ray vision + underdog comeback + ordinary protagonist + exhilarating read] Lin Chao is a laborer struggling to survive in the Ruili jade market. He thinks he'll spend his whole life dealing with dirt and backbreaking work, until an accident leaves him struck on the head by a steel pipe. When he wakes, he discovers he's gained a pair of “Golden Eyes” that can see through a stone's outer shell and reveal the jade within. A rough stone dismissed by its stall 318Reads6.5Score—14d adds
- 146 The Strongest Outsiders of the Martial World 最强江湖外八行 When the Qianmen rise in anger, the jianghu falls into chaos. Without conflict, there can be no Qianmen. If conflict rises again, the Qianmen will surely take the helm of the jianghu, restore order, and put an end to the fighting! When I was little, my grandfather read my fortune and said I was destined to “ride the wind to success.” After he died, I inherited his hardware store. Only when a beautiful woman came knocking did I learn that I was the heir to the Qianmen, a legendary jianghu school 607Reads9.1Score—14d adds
- 147 Tomb Raiding: The Autobiography of a South School Grave Robber 盗墓：来自一位南派土夫子的自传 [Authentic tomb raiding, outdoor adventure, suspense and the supernatural] I'm a tomb raider from the Southern School! In the early 1990s, I was forced to set out with my second uncle on the point of no return that is tomb raiding. They say tomb raiding is a trade where you risk your neck every day! In reality, what makes it even more treacherous than the ancient tombs is the deceitful underworld of tomb raiders! Now, let me tell you about the years I spent tomb raiding with the Southern School, 60kReads8.9Score4.6k14d adds
- 148 Prague’s Bloody Countdown 布拉格的血色倒计时 A Bloody Countdown in Prague —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 149 Changle Lane: A Golden Age Just as I Wish 长乐里：盛世如我愿 Zhao Dianyuan was the illegitimate son of a martial actor in a traveling opera troupe and a wealthy heiress. With a jade-like face and a slender waist above broad shoulders, he had been blessed with a handsome appearance from birth. After the September 18 Incident, he was driven south of the Great Wall and eventually made his way to Shanghai. Amid the city's glittering distractions, he experienced all kinds of strange adventures and saw how the land lay shattered, the times in chaos. Then one da 9kReads9.6Score1.3k14d adds
- 150 Divorced in Middle Age, I Strike It Rich Through Stone Gambling, and My Ex-Wife Regrets It 中年离婚，赌石暴富，前妻后悔 [Stone Gambling + Antiques Appraisal + Underdog’s Rise + X-Ray Vision + Tycoon + Farming + Everyday Urban Life + No Harem] Unable to bear their frugal, impoverished life any longer, he decided to take a chance for his family. He used years of savings to open a hot pot restaurant with a friend, only to get cheated by that friend, lose everything, and end up owing a huge amount in loan-shark debt. When a gang boss came to collect, his wife immediately asked for a divorce, and he left with nothing. 1.7kReads7.6Score18214d adds
