Novels like The Gods Must Keep Their Distance
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as The Gods Must Keep Their Distance, best match first.
- 1 Agent of the Supernatural 诡怪代理人 Comic artist Lin You suddenly gets a phone call informing him that he’s inherited an estate. In the blink of an eye, he becomes a rich second-generation heir. Grateful, he burns paper offerings and prays to the gods, never expecting to summon a ferocious ghost... 82Reads9.1Score—14d adds
- 2 I Told You to Sleep in a Coffin to Recover, Not to Have Vengeful Ghosts Carry It 让你睡棺材养病，没让你厉鬼抬棺 I was born dead and raised by my adoptive father in a coffin. To stay alive, I had no choice but to enter the Cave of Wronged Spirits, bow nine times to a coffin, and take a corpse as my master. I entered the Coffin Sect and, like generations of disciples before me, carried coffins to bury ghosts, spending my whole life entangled with every kind of bizarre evil spirit. The Nine Peaks Suppressing Corpses, coffins adrift on a sea of blood, a city built of bones, eight heirs vying for supremacy… In 2.3kReads—Score30214d adds
- 3 Ancient Rock: Imprint a Thousand Years, Carve All Things 古岩：印千年，刻万事 This book is also titled "Runshu, Why Are There So Many Villains Around You? Oh, Turns Out I'm One Too" A little spice-shop owner who had given up on ambition and started enjoying retirement early accidentally set off on a path with no return because of a bet. In the Qiu Dragon Tomb, demons guarded the dead while Qiu Dragons coiled around the pillars. Gazing at the bronze locks and golden coffin in the distance, someone remarked, “Nine bronze dragon pillars lock the golden coffin. Once it touche 19Reads—Score—14d adds
- 4 Haunted by a Vengeful Spirit 阴魂缠身 Where I come from, it’s customary to play pranks on bridesmaids. On the day my cousin got married, the pranks killed the bridesmaid, and her vengeful spirit began haunting me... Ever since I started hearing the voices of people just before they die, I haven’t known a moment’s peace! 72Reads—Score—14d adds
- 5 The Yellow River Mystery Journal 黄河惊奇手札 The white fish in the Yellow River, the stone tortoise resting on the riverbed, the black boat drifting by at midnight, the red carp leaping through the Dragon Gate: these are stories passed down among the people who live along the Yellow River. 138Reads6.3Score—14d adds
- 6 Mythic Forbidden Zone 神话禁区 Beneath the firmament, divine treasures lie hidden and ghosts lie in wait. I stumbled upon the secrets behind the legends. I crossed the lands between the three rivers and six banks, stained the snowy plains of towering peaks with blood, and endured countless brushes with death as I fought against fate for my life. I survived, yet the world has no trace of me. 203Reads6.3Score—14d adds
- 7 System Stew Is a Recipe for Fun! The Ultimate Trickster Plays by His Own Rules 系统乱炖欢乐多！最强老六路子野 Also known as: “A Sneaky Guy Like Me Gets a New Hilarious System Every Day” “The Strongest Spoilsport, Copying Other People’s Golden Fingers” (“The Crap God Is Here!”) [Shameless trickster + lighthearted comedy + not entirely serious] On the eve of a great crisis, in an era when “Hosts are as common as dogs and Systems are everywhere”... Yuan Man, a shameless young man with an SSS-rank talent who was hooked on pretending to be a useless slacker, got bound to a mysterious trash can that fell from 3Reads—Score—14d adds
- 8 The Ghost's Messenger 鬼遣人 “Offer the three sacrificial animals and fine grain to the ghosts and gods.” At eighteen, I happened by chance to meet a half-baked Taoist priest and got swept into a quest to uncover an ancient sacrificial rite. It all began when I took in a “Lord.” 108Reads—Score—14d adds
- 9 Apocalypse Descends: So I’m the Leader of the Mutants 末世降临：原来我是异种老大 In 2056, a solar storm swept across the globe, plunging the world into darkness for seven days and seven nights. Earth's ozone layer was destroyed, and solar radiation reached the ground. After that, the whole world changed. Then the crisis arrived, officially ushering in the Age of Death. A hundred years later, Fang Duonan, a boy from an ordinary border city, was supposed to go out and complete a task as required. But someone tried to kill him. When he woke up, he had a strange ghost hand attac 148Reads8.4Score—14d adds
- 10 Spiritual Qi Revival: Brother, You Want Me to Walk the Righteous Path?! 灵气复苏：兄弟让我走正道？！ [Spiritual Qi Revival] [Urban supernatural powers] Brotherhood between two male leads [Light ensemble cast] [No female lead] Not a romance, slow-paced Before the age of five, He Jiunian’s life was a blur. Blood followed him as he grew up, and he watched humanity survive in this world like puppets. Then he met someone who changed his life: Jiang He. He followed him forward, step by step, willingly becoming part of his plans in an attempt to be his most important pawn. “He Jiunian, who do you thin 1.4kReads—Score18214d adds
- 11 Chasing the Wind by Moonlight 乘月追风 [Mystery and horror + supernatural + ghost stories + not a power fantasy + no heroine] Intern doctor Lu Zhuifeng's family is framed by villains, and from then on, all kinds of spirits and ghosts frequently possess him, forcing him to get involved in supernatural incidents. He has only one unreliable, half-trained young fortune-teller by his side. How will they overcome the crises they face? As they get drawn deeper into the fray, a filthy conspiracy begins to emerge... 77Reads—Score—14d adds
- 12 The Hidden Treasure 密藏 On the twenty-eighth day of the twelfth month of 1998, Qiu Ming receives a mysterious phone call telling him to pick up a file from a specified location the next day. The file comes from the distant Kunlun Mountains and records some of the Qiu family’s past, including part of the truth about his grandfather’s death. One passage in the file catches Qiu Ming’s attention. It concerns a hidden treasure kept secret by an ancient Western Regions kingdom. For generations, members of the Qiu family have 844Reads—Score18014d adds
- 13 The Corpse Village Puppeteer 尸乡偃师 Fifteen years ago, the once-prosperous Qi family was consumed by fire overnight. He was the last child of this family of tomb raiders. Now, after fifteen years, he has returned to the path of tomb raiding, determined to uncover the mysteries hidden in ancient tombs. Why did the Shang dynasty's master craftsman sacrifice his eldest son and bury him beneath a long street? Did Emperor Taishu of Shang achieve the immortality he sought? What did the Gu family members see when they ventured into the Q 222Reads—Score—14d adds
- 14 The Longevity Project 长生计划 A handsome young man has turned up at my house, mooching food and lodging without paying, all under the excuse that he’s lost his memory. Every sign points to the fact that he has been alive for a very long time... 458Reads8.3Score10614d adds
- 15 Before the Strange Things Begin 在一切诡异之前 [Supernatural resurgence + horror + no System + semi-infinite survival + no saintly protagonist + not dark + no female lead] When ghosts invaded reality, a group of survivors gained the protection of the “Rules.” They became employees of the “Rules,” and to keep enjoying their protection, they had to complete tasks. But the power of the “Rules” was limited... I didn't really care about any of that. I didn't want to bother figuring out what was the cause and what was the effect. So what if this w 11Reads—Score—14d adds
- 16 I’m Patient No. 017 at the Psychiatric Hospital 我在精神病院当017号病患 I stand on the line between dawn and dusk, half-hidden in shadow. The blazing sun cannot reach me. I raise my eyes, only to plunge once more into a dead sea that speaks of loneliness. Time seems frozen by winter crows, and I am trapped in the bone-chilling water, unable to rise or sink. As my soul drifts away, I see a gaunt, bony hand trying to drag me out of the abyss. I embrace it, then watch its bewitching eyes as it sinks below. / I am not innocent. I am guilty. I cannot reach that sunlit pl 3Reads—Score—14d adds
- 17 I Ran into Ghosts on the First Day of School and Became the Paranormal World's Ceiling 开学撞鬼后，我成了灵异天花板 [Campus supernatural mysteries, suspense and horror, male lead's growth, gradually becoming decisive and ruthless, power fantasy, mystery] The Gate of the Underworld lies hidden on campus. Its gatekeeper vanished years ago, and the place has become a gathering ground for evil spirits. Lin Ye was an ordinary student, but was forced onto the path of exorcising evil and guiding souls to their next lives. He dispels resentment, suppresses malice, purifies filth, drives out evil spirits, and guides l 67Reads—Score—14d adds
- 18 The Darkest Forest: My Criminal Investigation Notes 至暗森林：我的刑侦笔记 Eighteen people who had never existed are found dead together in a minibus. Stranger still, it seems they had all been dead for twenty years… 81Reads6.4Score—14d adds
- 19 Quelling Spirits in a Haunted House 凶宅镇灵 I'm an ordinary real estate agent. One winter, I took on a house, and in less than a week, three people died inside its kitchen refrigerator. With no other option, I called Li Tiandi, a specialist in handling haunted houses, for help. While hunting ghosts with him, I unexpectedly learned that I had the constitution of someone who could travel to the underworld. And so I began a life of buying and selling haunted houses with him. 183Reads—Score—14d adds
- 20 I Heard I'm the Son of Satan 听说我是撒旦之子 [Urban Superpowers] [Single Male Lead] [Not a Saint] [No Official CP for the Protagonist, Ship Him However You Like] [The Whole World Loves the Protagonist] On his eighteenth birthday, Lin An was confirmed to be an unawakened. In this world, those who failed to awaken were abandoned and destined to be bullied. Lin An forced his way into the ranks of the awakened through murder and robbery, and gained the primordial power of "Satan". People like him were known as "Chaosborn." The world says: Cha 1.7kReads—Score40414d adds
- 21 The Nether Mausoleum 幽陵 A fleeting dream, a glance at passing scenes; eight thousand ghosts emerge from this realm. The Dragon Palace's blue waters are the real world; immortals point out the ancient kings of Shu... With nothing but a treasure-hunting verse, the Xiling Divine Manual, Bai Ze accidentally tore through a veil that had concealed secrets for millennia. The ancient age of slash-and-burn farming, the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, Yanzi creating the heavens, Fuxi making humankind: all seem both real and 556Reads8.2Score—14d adds
- 22 Jade Curse 玉咒 My family has a blood curse passed down through the generations. None of the men in our family live past the age of fifty. The source of the curse turns out to be a living piece of ancient jade. 1.6kReads8.8Score31114d adds
- 23 Everyone Is Madly in Love with Him, but He Just Wants to Go Home 所有人都疯狂爱他，而他只想回家 Xie Shiyu, 21, is a psychology student: calm, distant, and allergic to love. On his first day in the “Endless Game,” he knows he's drawn the worst possible card: the SSS-rank passive aura “Center of Attention.” Every being becomes obsessed with him in a twisted, fervent, possessive way, showering him with a warped kind of “favor.” To others, it's a cheat code for clearing the game. To him, it's a curse. From the head nurse at a psychiatric hospital to the vengeful spirit of a young woman at an a 20Reads—Score—14d adds
- 24 Young Taoist Master 少年道师 In southwestern China, funeral ritual officiants are also known as Daoist masters. When someone dies, rich or poor, their family will hire these masters to perform rites, choose a burial date, and select a gravesite with auspicious feng shui. Their daily work also involves many other things, including driving away evil spirits, conducting rituals, and even glimpsing the secrets of fate. Why does the boy leading the funeral procession set off firecrackers? What do the black and white strips 1.4kReads8.6Score24214d adds
- 25 Underworld Outsourcing Group: All My Clients Are Big Shots 地府外包群：我的甲方全是大佬 [No CP / Everyday Comedy / Workplace Wish-Fulfillment / Red Envelope Group / Sharp-Tongued Male Lead / Male Supporting Cast / Leveling Up] Zhou Shichu is an unemployed man from a family displaced by demolition in Shancheng. He sleeps until he wakes naturally every day, and his most strenuous exercise is moving from his bed to his computer. Then one night, he was pulled into a WeChat group called “Underworld Three Realms Outsourcing Services”... There, he met a bunch of immortals who were frantic 104Reads—Score10114d adds
- 26 Ghost Curse 鬼咒 Stars are people too. Let me tell you about the times I followed my master and helped some Chinese celebrities change their fate. Changing someone's fate, of course, starts with raising a little ghost. 3.1kReads—Score63614d adds
- 27 Searching for Dragon Pearls 寻龙藏珠 [First person + Suspense and exploration + Supernatural arts + Ensemble adventure + Ancient civilizations + No romance] To find my missing childhood friend, I accidentally wander into an underground cave, where a thousand-year-old drought demon bites me and leaves me afflicted with an ancient curse. The only way to suppress the curse and stay alive is to cultivate using Dragon Pearls. Thus begins my perilous and unpredictable quest to find dra 219Reads8.9Score—14d adds
- 28 Notes on Suppressing Evil 镇邪笔记 The four infamous evil objects passed down in folk legend are the Red-Clothed Fiend, the Grinning Corpse, the Bronze Coffin, and the Upright-Burial Grave. I’d only just graduated, and I’d already run into two of them… 4.4kReads8.7Score42914d adds
- 29 Slapped the School Belle from the Start, Then Changed Class to the One and Only Sword Immortal 开局扇校花耳光，我转职唯一剑仙 [Sword Immortal + System + No Romance + No Forgiveness + Game Merges with Reality + Ensemble Cast Later On + Not Invincible + Growth-Oriented + Slow Start, Strong Finish + Swordsmanship + Brotherhood] Fifty years ago, a game descended upon reality. Since then, all of Blue Star has been digitized. Martial arts reign supreme, ferocious beasts run rampant, and dungeons are everywhere! Xu Gui transmigrates into this world and awakens the Divine Choice System: Every choice he makes earns him a corres 400Reads8.8Score10414d adds
- 30 Corpse Town 千尸镇 Today, we're not talking about anything else. We're just telling a story. They say that somewhere in Hebei, there's a very strange paper effigy shop called the Yin-Yang Shop... 505Reads7.3Score6714d adds
- 31 The Doomsday Maniac Only Wants to Raise a Kid 末日狂徒只想带娃 [Doomsday + natural disasters + dad + mutation + ruthless + no female lead + no saintly protagonist] After the cataclysm, human civilization suffers a devastating blow. Technology collapses, resources run scarce, disasters strike one after another, and creatures mutate. Everyone lives in fear. They sell themselves for a mouthful of water. They abandon their families for a bite to eat. Children are deemed useless and casually discarded. Yet one man chooses to do the exact opposite. “You can pick 10Reads8.5Score—14d adds
- 32 The Boys: After Homelander Turned Evil, He Only Listens to Me 黑袍：祖国人黑化后他只听我的 The Boys fanfiction + Plot Simulation + Childhood Raising + Obsessive Loyal Puppy + Power Balance Through Contrasts + No Combat-Focused Plot After transmigrating as the lowest-ranking experimental records clerk at Vought International, Ji Yan thinks all he has to do is keep his head down and hang on until retirement. Then he binds to the [Plot Simulation System]. The System gives him no superpowers and no Compound V. It gives him just one ability: To simulate every emotional breakdown and moment 1.5kReads8.6Score20014d adds
- 33 Oh No, Did I Wake Up Too Soon? Am I the Boss Now? 坏了，起猛了，我成BOSS了？ What, you can summon minions? What a coincidence, so can I. What, you can transform a second time? What a coincidence, so can I. What, you can actually die? What a coincidence, I can too... Sorry, I really can't do that one. With his mask off, Pan Wuyou is sweet, adorable, and harmless. With his mask on, the plague doctor does whatever he wants, and sees no difference between human and beast. 42Reads—Score—14d adds
- 34 Surviving on the Frozen Sea: A Live-Streaming Duo of Powerful Villains Exiled from the Entertainment Industry 冰海求生：直播双强反派内娱流放 In the first year of the Cyber Era, the entertainment industry’s bottom-tier celebrities are exiled to the holographic universe known as Ningguta, where they must livestream a real game set in an icy sea. Now, two unlucky villains with top-tier looks and bottom-tier reputations have been selected. The moment they arrive, their supplies and clothes are taken away. Reunited by the “warmth of everyday life” and “the foodie’s mole” from their youth, they meet again in an unexpected romantic twist: 22Reads—Score—14d adds
- 35 Cheongdam Supernatural Affairs Office 清潭灵异事务所 Legend has it that vengeful ghosts haunt Longhua Wetland Park. After sending one final photo, my cousin Chu Rui’an vanished without a trace here. … My name is Chu Yan’an. I used to be just an ordinary photographer. I ventured into Longhua Park at night to find Chu Rui’an and nearly lost my life. There, I met Qin Shu, the head of the Qingtan Paranormal Affairs Office, with phoenix-like eyes and an otherworldly beauty that defied gender. The female ghost on Red Bridge, the swarms of water ghosts 3.4kReads8.9Score75714d adds
- 36 Rule Horror: My Talent Keeps Getting Stranger 规则怪谈：我的天赋越来越奇怪 The rating just came out, and I hope you'll show it lots of support. Thank you! [Original Instances + Creepy + Live Streaming + Comedy + Gets a Little Crazy Later] Also known as Leaving the World, I Was Chosen by a Rules-Based Horror Xia Yu was about to leave this beautiful world when he transmigrated. When he discovered that he had transmigrated to a world invaded by rules-based horror, he quickly calmed down and continued writing his own death notice. If he gets chosen by a rules-based horror, 235Reads6.1Score—14d adds
- 37 I Bury the Living and Carry Yin Coffins: The Sunlit World's Patrolman 葬活人，抬阴棺，我为阳间巡逻人 I am a ghost born among the living, bound by nine soul-piercing locks and fated to have my bones buried in ten graves. I have been buried alive, cursed by the dead, worn the bones of the living, challenged fate nine times, and entered ten deadly graves. Only then did I manage to change half my fate. Because I changed half my fate, the legendary Blood-Eyed Vengeful Woman, the Rotten Corpse Ghost Vine, the Human-Skin Constable, and others came looking for me. They thought I would become gentle aft 1.9kReads7.1Score16114d adds
- 38 Werewolf: A Million Words, One Battle to Become a Legend 狼人杀：百万字数，一战封神 Confidently siding with the aggressive wolf in the first round: Calm, composed, and in control. The aggressive wolf gets checked by the lone witch: In a panic, scrambling to pick up the pieces. On the second day, nobody believes his defense: Lying through your teeth, so why are you stammering? A hook wolf gets him voted out: Why are you crying? Get a grip! Other people's Werewolf games are full of mishaps. Qin Chuan's Werewolf games are nothing but stories. Fear not the night. Fight once, an 4.9kReads6.1Score39014d adds
- 39 The Lord God Is Everyone's Dream Lover 主神他是万人迷 [No Romance + Everyone’s Favorite + Plot Takes Off + Ship Whoever You Like + Plot Is Not the Focus] [This is a writing exercise. There’s no outline; I’ll write whatever comes to mind.] As a new Lord God, Lin Yin was frustrated. In the cultivation world, he outshone the young prodigies of a hundred nations, leaving every beauty looking dull beside him. “I like you…” “Sorry, romance would slow down my cultivation.” In the world of mythology, he was the embodiment of beauty and evil, driving a 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 40 I’m the Demon Lord, but I’m Bound to a Succubus System 我，魔王，但是绑定了魅魔系统 [Why doesn’t the female-oriented fiction section have an epic fantasy tag? QAQ] (One review earns you one extra chapter. We reliably update three chapters a day.) When other people transmigrate, they become overpowered heroes or saviors. Victor, from the start, becomes the “Demon King,” and the kind who gets drugged and sent to a nobleman’s bed as a gift pack! The good news: He’s bound to a System! The bad news: It’s called [Incubus’s Gift]. How does that have even a penny’s worth to do with his 376Reads8.4Score10814d adds
- 41 Thirteen Years in the Shady Business 我捞偏门十三年 [The rating just came out, but it'll go up later] I entered the business in 2008 and retired in 2021. People usually call those of us in this line of work "readers of the unseen." In thirteen years on the job, only about eighty percent of the strange cases I handled ended well. All I can say is that ghosts aren't the most sinister things out there. Some things don't even have names you can call them by. 59.8kReads8.9Score10.3k14d adds
- 42 From the Start, I Received a Letter from a Dead Man 开局收到一封死人来信 No romance, no harem, no cultivation The year he graduated from university, Ji Yao received a letter from his grandmother, who had been dead for six years. Five kinds of insurance and a housing fund, twenty thousand a month, and just six hours of work a day. Could there really be a job like that? What he didn’t expect was that, after the letter arrived, one misfortune after another would befall him… A train hijacked by ghosts, an old woman made of candle wax crawling out of a flame, a bizarre 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 43 Usurping Heaven's Mandate 篡天命 The arts of the Dao often say, “Fate can be known, but not changed; calamities can be calculated, but not avoided.” Yet when my grandpa passed down three ghost coins to me, he told me there was another kind of person in this world, someone who could toy with destiny as if it were in the palm of their hand. I’m one of those people who gamble with life: I gamble with other people’s lives, and with my own. But if you want to gamble with Heaven, you have to find a coffin first... 534Reads7.2Score—14d adds
- 44 The Day I Left My Master, I Banged My Head and Killed My Entire Family 出师当天，我一头磕死满院亲人 A yellow weasel weeps at a grave, a dead woman gives birth. A sinister, uncanny world of curse magic unfolds... 2.4kReads8.9Score32014d adds
- 45 I Came from the Yellow Springs 我来自黄泉 At the border between yin and yang, at the mouth of the Yellow Springs, the living guard the Thirteen Ghost Gates. The prison governor, the jailers, and the Brocade-Robed Marquis; at the post station for the dead, a mountain dog keeps watch. The door gods, the water nymph, the Confucius Temple; red lanterns and white funeral banners circle the streets. This ghost ballad, missing one line, conceals a world-shaking secret. I was a child my grandfather stole from the Yellow Springs, so before I was 16.4kReads9.0Score1.8k14d adds
- 46 Surviving the Mist: With Negative Sanity, I Fear No Night 迷雾求生：理智为负的我不惧黑夜 [Foggy Survival]+ [No Romance]+ [Leveling]+ [Cthulhu Mythos]+ [Dual Personality]+ [Food] (lol) After his death, Zhao Nian, who has a dual personality, is dragged into a mysterious world shrouded in fog. The days last only eight hours, while the nights stretch on for sixteen, and the dense fog is crawling with bizarre entities. The System gives him nothing but a drafty shack and seven days' worth of food from the start. With no other choice, Zhao Nian becomes a master of playing it safe: scavengi 2.3kReads8.2Score29014d adds
- 47 Online Game: The Periodic Table of Elements 网游:元素周期表 He misses out on the beginner weapon, but accidentally gets hidden equipment; He chooses the wrong starting class, but accidentally becomes a powerhouse; See how a top student and newbie player masters System Online! Hilarious adventures and downright outrageous plays, all in one! (Shortened to S.O., an MMOG-VR game. Chinese title: Order.) (Silly fun + comedy + no female lead + wholesome pairing) Friend link: Tomato Novel, “Online Game: My Mental Strength Is Unmatched” 89Reads8.8Score—14d adds
- 48 Pokemon: The Sandstorm Tyrant, Starting with Mining 宝可梦：从挖矿开始的沙暴暴君 [Tycoon] + [Sandstorm team] + [Hardcore battling] + [No female lead] + [Money talks] “Hey, are your Pokemon even legal?” Whenever someone asked him that on the battle platform, Lu Chen would look at his “demolition squad” and wonder if the premium ore he'd been feeding these little brats had gotten a bit too extreme. The Mountain-Eater, Tyranitar: chews up meteoric iron like potato chips, wears a hundred-ton dark-gold suit of armor, and can trigger shifts in the Earth's crust with a single Eart 6.4kReads6.5Score47814d adds
- 49 My Strongest Mechanism Ever 我史上最强机制 [No heroine, no romantic subplots] [System] [Golden finger] [Vast world] [Extremely satisfying] [Transmigration] [Reborn] Lin Yuchen transmigrates to a strange world filled with all kinds of extraordinary powers: digital stats, martial arts, cultivation, samurai, ninjas, Systems, golden fingers, and more. But every power requires a corresponding innate ability. Every living being has an ability within them called a Lifebound Talent, and these talents determine a person’s future. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 50 Infinite Awakening: A Life in the Spotlight 无限觉醒：开启闪耀人生 [No romance + supernatural powers + brotherhood + fated friendship + machinery + vampires] Read patiently through the first three chapters, and you’ll find a great story. No System, no cookie-cutter plot. Lu Xin opens his eyes and finds himself in an abandoned factory. The wounds on his body are healing at a visible speed. This is a world where technology and magic coexist. A mysterious force tugs at him, and his memories slowly return. His unfamiliar surroundings gradually begin to feel familia 20Reads—Score—14d adds
