Novels like The Underworld: A Life in the Jianghu
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as The Underworld: A Life in the Jianghu, best match first.
- 151 We’ve Been Around the Block Too 哥几个也混过 We navigate society with feeling, And live our lives by loyalty. When feeling and loyalty conflict, We choose loyalty first. We walked side by side, reveling in the wild abandon of youth through those passionate years. You’re my brother, so we’ll face life and death together. 160Reads—Score—14d adds
- 152 Legends of Jiangbei 江北风云传 Jiangbei is a tangled city, its underground forces deeply entrenched in a balance of power that no one has been able to shake for decades. No one could have guessed that the person to stir up this muddy pond would be a transfer student at a vocational high school. Su Yan transfers in and plunges straight into a school rife with conflict and chaos. Faced with the law of the jungle, he neither hides nor backs down. He makes his fists his blade and his courage his edge, carving out a place for hims 9Reads—Score—14d adds
- 153 Underworld Jianghu: From Death Row Inmate to King of the Underworld 黑道江湖：从死囚到黑道之王 [Urban + underworld + wish fulfillment + big shots + realism + no System + multiple heroines] Is the underworld all about human relationships and social etiquette? No. It’s about the relationships and social etiquette that come after the fighting. The only people qualified to sit down and talk about such things are those who have earned their place through violence. Plant your flag, make your name, set up shop, stake out your turf. In the underworld, there’s a mountain ahead of you and another b 257Reads8.5Score—14d adds
- 154 King of the Underworld: I Rule with Unmatched Power 黑道之王：权势滔天我为王 [Urban + underworld + feel-good power fantasy + big shot + no System + two heroines + mildly risqué] This novel is also known as "After Storming the Prison, I Became the Underworld Emperor" and "The Underworld King Who Rose from the Dark Zone", the first part. This is the second part and can be read on its own. Two chapters are all it takes to get your fix. Qin Shiyi came from the Dark Zone. He brought his brothers to Pearl City in District Two, hoping to make something of themselves. By fightin 833Reads7.0Score—14d adds
- 155 Black Shark 黑鲨 I can’t stand you, so I’ll beat you up! You made me unhappy, so I’ll make you pay! White can be black, and black can become white, because even under the brightest lights, shadows are always there. Blunt and revealing, but not judgmental. This may not be the pinnacle of crime fiction, but it is absolutely a trailblazer in the genre! Just wait and see! 557Reads8.4Score—14d adds
- 156 The Jianghu: I Am the Kingpin 江湖：我即为枭 [Underworld] [Brothers United] [Mind-Bending] [Passionate and Thrilling] Three years in prison couldn't dull my edge. My name is Wang Xiao. I spent three years behind bars for offending a powerful figure. After my release, I returned to my old stomping grounds with my brothers and the skills my master taught me. Some want to trample me underfoot. Some want to stab me in the back. And my enemies, lurking in the shadows, are watching me like hawks. But my life is no longer something just anyone ca 114Reads—Score—14d adds
- 157 The Years We Shared, Brothers 兄弟们的那些年 [Underworld + Ensemble Cast + Decisive Action + Dramatic Rescues + Passionate + Expansive Worldbuilding] A boy watches his parents die horrifically in a gang war, then is forced to leave school behind and descend into the bottomless abyss of the underworld. He forms a bond of life and death with four brothers, growing amid bloodshed and making his stand amid tangled grudges and passions. Through this gauntlet of flashing blades, he swears that every blood debt will be repaid in blood. 23Reads—Score10414d adds
- 158 The Path of an Ordinary Person 小人物的路 A person has to make many choices in life. Everyone has choices of their own. Everyone has their own path. As for whether a path is right or wrong, no one has a definitive answer. (The story spans quite a lot.) 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 159 The Boss of the Underworld 江湖话事人 [Not many readers, so the rating just won’t go up] One wrong turn brought me into the jianghu. Watch as I summon storms with one hand and calm them with the other. Starting from nothing, I’ll carve out a path through the jianghu. They say you become what you eat, so if you want to climb higher, there’s only one thing to eat... 2.7kReads7.8Score20314d adds
- 160 Underworld: Blue Skies 黑道：青天 At a class reunion, I kept a low profile and was mocked and sneered at by my former classmates and teachers. Just as I was about to leave, the class beauty from back then suddenly stood up to defend me. 22Reads—Score—14d adds
- 161 The Jiangnan Undertaker 江南送葬人 (No clichés, no invincibility, no System, no brainless characters) After the 1990s, the jianghu in the eyes of people from Jiangnan was very different from that of other places. People from Jiangnan weren’t tall, nor did they have powerful physiques. They hardly ever swore, and they didn’t roam the streets, fighting without restraint. Their jianghu was no longer about blades flashing in plain sight. They preferred ruthless schemes and power plays behind the scenes. If someone hit you, would you 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 162 Everyone Else Has Transmigrated and Stands Unrivaled. Why Haven’t You Changed? 都穿越谁与争锋了，你还不改变？ A feel-good story with a slow pace and no soap-opera drama. It won't change the direction of the five-man group. After the protagonist meets them, the story focuses on him in another district, with the city's development revolving around him. My name is Xiang Yun, and I'm someone even a dog can kick around. I'm an orphan, and at school the school bully would often demand money from me and pick on me. Then one day, I couldn't take it anymore. I beat him so badly he ended up in the hospital. I tho 330Reads—Score—14d adds
- 163 A World of Scoundrels 渣混的世界 What is a hero? In truth, everyone is a hero. Those who face reality and still live earnestly instead of letting themselves go are heroes. Under the laws of survival, everyone makes different choices. Those who hold fast to what’s in their hearts are all brave souls. Watch as the winds shift. 315Reads8.4Score10414d adds
- 164 The Boss 老大 After I accidentally saw my stepmother, Zhang Xiaohong, looking alluring in the nude, my father sent me back to the countryside. I spent ten years studying hard, hoping to make something of myself, only to be framed and thrown in the police station on the day of the college entrance exam. With fate against me, I kicked open the door to the underworld and left behind a miraculous legend in the city of Zhongjiang. [Not a mindless power fantasy + romance and career advance side by side + gripping p 154Reads7.4Score—14d adds
- 165 Urban: From Nobody to Kingpin 都市：从小人物到大枭雄 There are many ways to live in this world. My way is simple: let your fists do the talking! 9Reads7.2Score—14d adds
- 166 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
- 167 Tales of the Night, Shrouded in Darkness 夜话无明 [5,000 Words Daily] [Collusion Between Officials and Gangsters] [Profit Above All] [Human Nature Is Evil] [Ruthless and Decisive] [No Formulaic Plot] [Not a Power Fantasy] Walk the night roads and knock on the black door. Beyond it lies a dazzling world, but one wrong step could send you into an abyss with no way back. This path has set countless hearts ablaze, and drawn countless others to follow, one after another, eager to risk everything. What sparks will fly when old-school guardians of hon 219Reads9.3Score—14d adds
- 168 The Underworld Boss Who Came Out of a Martial Arts Academy 从武校走出来的黑道大佬 [Youthful passion + Ruthless + Absolutely no saintly do-gooder] What kind of legendary life will Gu Feng write for himself after returning from martial arts school? A young man in fine clothes, riding a spirited horse: may he make the most of his youth and live without regrets! May you wander far and wide, yet return still young at heart! 14Reads6.5Score—14d adds
- 169 Tiger Descending the Mountain 下山虎 Two brothers, one lifetime. Far from home and with no one to turn to, just staying alive is so hard. But the living can’t just sit around and die. We have to keep moving forward. Even if life is a swamp of filth, we’ll still shape it into a flower, even if it’s only a foxtail. 35Reads8.8Score—14d adds
- 170 The Bad Guy: I Transmigrated into Xie Wendong, but I Won’t Join the Underworld 坏蛋：穿越谢文东，我不混黑道了 Xie Wendong opened his eyes and discovered that he had become the younger version of the future underworld kingpin. Looking at his youthful yet ruthless face in the mirror, he smiled. “Run with the underworld? That’s way too low-tech.” Armed with modern business thinking, he founded the Dongsheng Group. San Yan became chairman of the security group, Li Shuang took charge of logistics, and Jiang Sen switched careers to become 807Reads—Score5914d adds
- 171 The Pinnacle of Dark Martial Arts 黑武之巅 Sorry, everyone, for posting the prologue so late. You can skip ahead to the beginning of Chapter 102 first, then come back and start reading from Chapter 1. Apologies. A novel featuring the underworld, supernatural abilities, the city, and campus life. He and his friends will rise together to the pinnacle of the Black Martial Path. This is the story of his growth... People are often at their most brash and carefree when they are young. That’s what it means to be young and reckless. This is an e 8Reads—Score—14d adds
- 172 Mad Dog Sheng 疯狗晟 [Urban] [Underworld] [Dark] [Ensemble Cast] [No System] He is “Mad Dog Sheng,” the man who terrifies the underworld, but all he wants is to be an ordinary dad. From a stray dog freezing to death on the street to the ruler who built an underground order with his own hands, Gou Sheng’s life is steeped in blood and legend. With a ruthless streak that made him fearless of death and the instincts of a beast, he swallowed up his rivals and laid down the rules, making all of Jiangcheng tremble in his —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 173 The Underworld as Seen Through a Madman's Eyes 疯子眼中所谓的江湖 His father goes bankrupt overnight. His mother receives a notice that she is critically ill. A carefree young wastrel stumbles into the world of the martial underworld! Confronted with all the different lives in the martial world, and one situation after another where he has no choice, the young man, already mired in the quagmire, gazes around in confusion. The martial world is a road of no return. You have to go mad to become a demon. An unseen hand pushes him ever onward... Can this dashing yo 768Reads7.0Score10314d adds
- 174 [The Underworld: The Storm Rises Again] 【黑道，风云再起】 “Once you’ve drawn the bow, there’s no turning back.” “When I chose the path of the underworld,” “I’d already passed the point of no return.” “Then I’ll stand at the very top of the underworld,” “so the world can only look up to me, and everyone will know my name: Lin Mo...” 155Reads—Score—14d adds
- 175 After Getting Out of Prison, I Married the Underworld Princess 出狱后，我娶了黑道公主 [Multiple heroines + first-person slice of life + retro jianghu customs and human relationships + not for everyone] After the 1999 college entrance exams, I accidentally killed someone while trying to save Xiang Xiaoya and was sentenced to five years in prison. After my release, I followed Brother Wai and became a manager at the most upscale nightclub in Tianlin City. I lived with Xia Shu, the club's star hostess, and enjoyed a life of wine and excess, until I offended Shangguan Yu, the underwor 3.8kReads8.8Score30814d adds
- 176 The Bad Guys 坏家伙们 When the jianghu is no longer traditional, it’s bound to become driven by self-interest! After the turn of the millennium, a new generation of “bad guys,” born in the eighties and nineties, began to take the stage in their own jianghu! These newcomers no longer revered the spirit of chivalry. They let money clear the way and put profit above all else! To carve out a place for themselves in this treacherous jianghu, they had to stop at nothing and plan every move! The great waves sift the sand! M 5.4kReads8.9Score31914d adds
- 177 Dark Glory: Twenty Years in the Underworld of Northeast China 黑暗荣耀：东北江湖二十年 1.3kReads8.8Score10914d adds
- 178 My Years as a Gangster 我当混子的那些年 The underworld is an endless wilderness, and every gang member is a man prepared to die! The underworld is a narrow path, and every gang member risks his life just to make it through! The underworld is a pure arena of beasts: the winners become kings, and the losers are crushed! Forced onto this path, the young Jiang Liang must now show how he can rule the world with one hand! 112Reads—Score—14d adds
- 179 The Pawn Who Crosses the River: Beyond Forgiveness 过河卒：罪无可恕 People who make money through shady dealings need to learn to burn incense and pray to Buddha. Those who move in the underworld have to believe that good things come to those who wait. After the turn of the millennium, Jiang Xinze was kicked off the police force for saving someone. He led his brothers into a world of guns and blades, with blood on their military daggers, riding the winds of a turbulent era to forge a dazzling legacy. If you’ve got a score to settle, settle it. If you won’t back 10.6kReads8.5Score89614d adds
- 180 A Long Road for a Lifetime 长路终生 The untold stories of the modern underworld, filled with love, family bonds, and friendship. This is the story of someone who endures a life of hardship and trials. I hope you'll show your support. I'm a new writer, so please be patient and offer advice on what I've done well and what I can improve. 64Reads6.8Score—14d adds
- 181 The Dragon Rises in the Martial World: A Father's Promise 龙起江湖·父诺 The Dragon Rises in the Martial World: A Father's Promise 12Reads—Score—14d adds
- 182 Black, White, and Gray? How Can You Get Ahead Without Getting Your Hands Dirty? 黑白灰？不涉灰怎么出人头地 Brotherhood + slow-burn ensemble cast + one female lead + not overpowered + first-person perspective Some people say black is black and white is white, and anyone who falls into the underworld is a bad person. I wanted to be a good person. I never wanted to fall into the underworld. But does being a good person mean being looked down on? Does it mean being powerless when trouble strikes? Only later did I realize that society isn’t simply black or white. The world’s true colors are black, white, 22Reads—Score—14d adds
- 183 Tales of the Second High School 二中之风云往事 For all three years of middle school, my whole class ostracized me. Second-year students cornered and humiliated me, and everyone treated me like trash and walked all over me. They thought I was weak and easy to bully, but they didn’t know that a boy backed into a corner has nothing left to lose. From this day on, I’ll give my life to anyone who protects me, and pay back anyone who bullies me twice over. This isn’t a novel. It’s the bloody path of my youth, the one I truly walked. “My name is Ba 258Reads—Score10914d adds
- 184 Tokyo: My Girlfriend Is a Ruthless Yakuza Princess 东京：女友是恶劣的黑道公主 [Romance] [Mild Yandere] [One Female Lead] [Yakuza] [Urban Daily Life] [Japanese Light Novel Style] In an island nation dominated by conglomerates, Sakurai Tsukasa is just a poor kid from the countryside. Thanks to his knowledge from a previous life and his hard work, he managed to get into Tokyo University in this parallel world. As someone who transmigrated, it's not unreasonable for him to want to escape poverty and make something of himself, even if he's not trying to rule the world. One day 56Reads7.6Score—14d adds
- 185 The Underworld Life of a Post-90s Generation 90后的黑道生活 I'm a native of Tianjin, born and raised, and part of the post-90s generation. This story unfolds in Tianjin, a city alive with the bustle of everyday life, and follows the extraordinary journey of a young man from our generation. Starting out as a rebellious troublemaker, he roughs it among the street thugs before rising to become a feared underworld boss. Through years of hardship, one saying remained etched in his heart: “If you live by the sword, you'll die by the sword.” This story is entir 136Reads6.3Score—14d adds
- 186 Reko High: The Strongest New Student in Suzuran's History! 热高：铃兰史上最强新生！ [Fiery battles]+ [System + dual transmigration]+ [One heroine]+ [Slow burn] Lin Feng, whose life was a sea of gray, unexpectedly transmigrates into the world of Hot-Blooded High School and is reborn in the body of Suzuki Blade, a first-year student at Suzuran. Watching his classmates shout about fighting every day, he finds it all dull and spends his time slacking off. But the appearance of an unexpected figure gives him a new reason to keep striving in this world! From that day on, a new Suzuki 1.5kReads6.2Score—14d adds
- 187 An Age of Turmoil: The Gangster Who Rose from a Village 混乱年代：从村走出来的枭雄 After leaving the military, Wu Wenjun drifted around the village, looking for a trade to take up. Just then, the village was holding an election for village chief. His Third Uncle, the former chief, was provoked at a banquet. Enough was enough: if you can dish it out, you can take it. How could he stand by while someone bullied a man in his own village? He stepped forward at once, and so began his life in the underworld. When he looked back, he had become a famous young boss in the criminal worl 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 188 Honor Among Gangsters 黑道有义 My new work is out! Come read it on Tomato Novel. I hope you’ll enjoy it. Your support motivates me to write, and I’ll do my best to tell every story well! 22Reads—Score—14d adds
- 189 I Have Thousands of Underlings, Yet They Insist I'm a Model Citizen 手下几千小弟，非说是三好青年 [Underworld] + [Reborn] + [System] + [Going Straight] + [Campus Life] + [Multiple Heroines] + [Business Savvy] In prison, Han Zu, the gang's second-in-command who held all the group's major criminal records, was ambushed. “Brother Zu, you're old. The only way I can get ahead is by taking you out!” “As long as you're alive, plenty of people won't be able to sleep!” At the moment he closed his eyes, his past flashed before him: brothers dying tragic deaths, leaving his home behind, and dying in pr 397Reads—Score—14d adds
- 190 I'm a Respectable College Student, So How Did I Become a Gang Boss?! 我正经大学生，咋成黑帮大佬了！ [Urban]+ [System]+ [Reborn]+ [Wild Imagination]+ [Decisive and Ruthless] Kill and rob, and you’ll strike it rich. Build bridges and roads, and you’ll die without a grave. In his previous life, Chen Yang’s family was destroyed by the oppression of the criminal underworld. Now Reborn, Chen Yang unexpectedly activates the [Strongest Underworld System]. He casts off his former cowardice and timidity: I’d rather betray the world than let the world betray me! Chen Yang has three principles: First, if 3Reads6.6Score—14d adds
- 191 The Unyielding Fist 不屈的拳头 This is a world of black and white, with no shades of gray. Twin brothers were forced apart while still in their swaddling clothes, and from then on lived completely different lives. Years later, they meet again at the same high school... 66Reads—Score—14d adds
- 192 Tales of the Underworld 黑道风云往事 This story is entirely fictional. Any resemblance to actual people or events is coincidental. This book urges people to choose the right path and serves as a warning to those who have gone astray. At eight, backed by my uncle, I planted the seeds of violence with a kitchen knife and blood. At sixteen, yearning for the world of the underworld, I plunged headfirst into its maelstrom. I saw its filth and darkness, its betrayals and its worship of profit, with only the faintest trace of loyalty. I s 61Reads—Score214d adds
- 193 Underworld Storm: The Uncrowned King 黑道风云：无冕王侯 (First person, period setting, underworld) A big brother? A big brother isn't some glamorous, all-powerful emperor who does whatever he pleases. A big brother is just the guy who picks up the tab. The underworld? It's brotherly loyalty, deceit and betrayal. It's a place that strips the tenderness from gentle-hearted men and hardens them, and turns green young boys into grizzled old gangsters. My name is Zhao Qingfeng. I've been around the underworld, and I was once a big brother! 37.3kReads9.2Score3.9k14d adds
- 194 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
- 195 Urban Dragon in Hiding: I'm a Legend 都市潜龙：我就是传奇 In the underworld, whoever has the hardest Dragon-Head Staff is king! Some say that stepping into the underworld is like drawing a bad lot. In the end, you either die on the run or meet a grisly end in the street. I'm Guan Pan, nicknamed Judge! The future belongs to us young people! Youth means being wild, and ambition can take you anywhere! Liu Huaqiang once said: “If you're not hot-blooded, are you even young?” Young people leap through the Dragon Gate, their lives rising and falling! The dark 319Reads6.0Score—14d adds
- 196 Neither Black nor White? A Quack Doctor Twice Over 亦黑亦白？双料庸医 I'm a clinic owner. One act of justice made me enemies with the underworld, and from then on I began walking a path where I could operate in both the criminal and legitimate worlds. The world isn't simply black or white. It's both black and white. This isn't exactly a power fantasy. There are gangs, passion, and humor, as well as brotherhood between men who support one another and rise to the top together. 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 197 The Thirteen Hawks of the Underworld 黑道十三鹰 He was once a shining star in the military, rising to prominence through his fearlessness. But fate took a sudden turn during a brutal battle with drug traffickers. In the midst of a fight to the death, he had no choice but to kill a captured drug lord, a decision that forced him to leave the military. From then on, he entered the underworld, burying his former glory and sense of duty deep within. Like a lone wolf, he roamed the world of darkness and began a life in the criminal underworld that 878Reads—Score—14d adds
- 198 Jinbei Storm: A Black-Market Outlaw 晋北风云：黑道狂徒 Yanbei City is known as the Coal Capital, and coal is also called black gold. Crowds of gold seekers pour into Yanbei City, hoping to get a share of the coal industry. The various factions stop at nothing to achieve their goals. In their eyes, everything has a price, including human life. What is the underworld? The underworld is face. The underworld is brotherhood. The underworld is money. They say the coal of northern Shanxi is black, but few realize that human hearts are blacker still. After 4.2kReads9.0Score22614d adds
- 199 After Prison, I Just Want to Live a Quiet Life 出狱后，我只想平平安安过日子 [The world is too deep for me. I just want to make something of myself.] My name is Ma Tengfei. I had just finished the college entrance exams when I got into a fight and was sent to prison for three years, missing my chance to go to college. A death-row inmate named Uncle Ming told me there were three kinds of people in this world: those above everyone else, courted by the masses and living lives others envy; those in the middle, scurrying around like ants and fighting one another just to survi 6.2kReads7.5Score42814d adds
- 200 1980: A New Order in the Underworld 一九八零：江湖新秩序 What is the martial world? Wherever there are people, there will be conflict! The strong survive, and the weak perish. That is the martial world! Relive the 1980s and pay tribute to a youth long gone! This is the story of Han Yue, and how he rose from the bottom to the top of the provincial capital, only to fall again! The road through the martial world is treacherous. Everyone survives by their own wits! Hold on, and you can make something of yourself. Give up, and you're out... (This book is p 4.4kReads8.7Score28314d adds
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