Novels like Opening the Road to the Underworld
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Opening the Road to the Underworld, best match first.
- 101 Ghosts, Help! Wait, How Do I Say I Can Eat Ghosts? 鬼啊救命，结果我会吃鬼怎么说啊 Help! There’s a ghost! I was just an ordinary office worker, living a dull nine-to-five life. Who could have imagined that this company outing would become the most terrifying experience of my life? The company decided to hold an unusual outdoor cookout in the mountains, supposedly to help everyone relax and get to know one another better. When our group arrived at the mountain, the sun was shining. Light filtered through the thick leaves, dappling the ground, while a gentle breeze carried the f —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 102 The Pawnshop of Obsessions 执念当铺 [Mystery and the supernatural + urban legends + all beings of the three realms + pawning obsessions] I took over my grandfather’s midnight pawnshop. This pawnshop has no boundaries, and accepts anything. The living must stay away; we only take obsessions. In some corner of the city lies an unremarkable shop called the Obsession Pawnshop. It takes no gold or silver, only the obsessions people cannot let go of deep in their hearts: a memory of regret, a false mask, an unrequited longing. All can b 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 103 What's Wrong with a Paper Effigy Shop That Reads Feng Shui and Catches Ghosts? 纸扎店怎么了也看风水也抓鬼 The evil ghost’s skin was an eerie bluish-black, its eyes blood-red, and black mist poured from its mouth. Its teeth were as sharp as knives, still stained with blood. Chen Yu was so terrified by the sight that he couldn’t move. All he could do was watch as the evil ghost slowly closed in on him. The evil ghost stretched out its long, slender claws, their nails sharp as hooks, and lightly traced Chen Yu’s face. A stinging pain flashed across his skin, and a streak of blood appeared. He wanted t 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 104 My Years in the Funeral Business 我干殡葬的那些年 People light candles, ghosts blow out the lamps. The dead return at midnight, corpses rise in funeral halls, and ancient relics lie buried for thousands of years. In my years working in the funeral business, I’ve encountered plenty of strange and uncanny things. The living walk the roads of the living world, and the dead walk the roads of the underworld. But sometimes, not everyone on the underworld’s roads is a ghost, and not everyone on the living world’s roads is human… 50.6kReads9.2Score5k14d adds
- 105 As Long as I Dare to Draw My Blade, It Gets Faster Every Time 只要我敢拔刀，我的刀就越拔越快 [Transmigration + Low Martial Arts + No Female Lead + Not a Power Fantasy] After transmigrating to a world that exists outside the usual setting, Xiao Shi was no exception: he came with a System of his own. His System was simple. Kill someone to extract their lifespan, then burn that lifespan to grow stronger. There was just one catch: the person he killed had to be willing to die by his hand. Xiao Shi chose to become an assassin, drawing his blade to kill his clients’ targets in exchange for t 3.5kReads6.4Score20914d adds
- 106 No Way Out, So I Opened a Shop to Read Feng Shui and Catch Ghosts 没活路了，我开个店看风水捉捉鬼 The evil ghost’s face grew even more hideous and terrifying. Its skin began to peel away, revealing bright red muscle and stark white bone beneath. The flames in its eyes blazed more fiercely, as if they were about to shoot out. 27Reads—Score—14d adds
- 107 The Myriad Phenomena Restoration Bureau 万象修复局 [Urban Mystery + Folk Horror + Unusual Profession + Conceptual Restoration + Ensemble Cast + No System] When a city begins to forget “fire,” when the names of the dead appear on paper effigies, when streets vanish from the map overnight... Some things can be fixed when they break. But what if what's broken is a “concept” shared by all humanity? Shen Yan is an antique restorer and a member of the Bureau of Universal Restoration. He can restore the things this world is forgetting. 5Reads—Score—14d adds
- 108 Beast Taming: I Have a Magic Eye That Sees Everything 御兽：我有一只洞悉万物的魔眼 [Beast Taming for Everyone + Bargain Hunting + Absurdity + Bizarre Curiosities + Apocalypse + Everyday Life + Growth Story + Realistic Fiction + Not a Power Fantasy + Straightforward Readers, Stay Away] Spiritual qi revival swept the world. One after another, animals evolved, becoming savage and brutal and plunging people into misery. A new profession emerged: Beast Tamer. On the day spiritual qi revived, a strange seed burrowed into Qi Xu’s empty eye socket and transformed into a demonic eye. W 3.6kReads8.1Score39014d adds
- 109 Hey, Your Existence Is an Anomaly! 喂，你的存在是异常！ Why is there a Chinese-style ruin buried beneath London? During construction in a park near Elephant and Castle, the eaves of a building pointing underground came to light. Chinese student Li Chengzhen initially thought that joining Professor Jack Cleve on an archaeological dig would mean little more than sorting through records, identifying Chinese characters, and reminding his overexcited mentor to eat on time. Until the explanations identifying the site as a modern garden were overturned one 5Reads6.2Score21014d adds
- 110 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~~ 2.5kReads8.7Score23414d adds
- 111 Mama Haha Won't Fly Anymore 玛玛哈哈不飞了 Mama Haha Won't Fly Anymore 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 112 The Strange Case of Dianyun 滇云诡案 [Republican-era mystery + criminal investigation + deduction + serial cases + passionate ensemble cast] “Stand up for the living, speak for the dead.” In 1920, Mengzi County in Yunnan is caught in a bitter power struggle full of deception and intrigue. Zhou Sinian, newly returned from studying abroad, boards a train for Yunnan. Born into a family of coroner examiners, he is now the new forensic examiner at the Mengzi police station. Around the same time, a mysterious young man with astonishing s 316Reads9.1Score10314d adds
- 113 I’m Terminally Ill, Yet I Still Have to Save the World 我都是绝症了，还要操心救世 (No CP + insectoid invasion + book two) At thirty-four, Yu Xiao quit his steady job and rented a small farmhouse on the outskirts of a third-tier city. For the first thirty-some years of his life, Yu Xiao had lived an utterly ordinary existence. The only extraordinary thing was that he was diagnosed with a terminal illness at thirty-four. At the time, Yu Xiao thought this would probably be the high point of his life. Half a year later, however, a doomsday-saving System calling itself 888 cam 8Reads—Score—14d adds
- 114 Yin and Yang: The Book of Life and Death 阴阳：生死簿 Lin Zhao spent ten years as an outer disciple Taoist at Longhu Mountain and learned only one spell: the Soul Summoning Art. > Until one night, the voice of Heaven rang out in his mind: “Ten zhang ahead, a wronged spirit seeks help.” > Following the voice, he found an old woman clutching a black cat and sobbing that her son had gone missing. > He formed a hand seal to investigate and discovered that the cat's eyes reflected the scene of her son's death: the neighbor butcher's hideous face. > When —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 115 The Stone That Remembers the Light 会记住光的石头 The Stone That Remembers the Light 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 116 Rule Horror: The Last One to Leave the Classroom After Evening Study 规则怪谈：晚自习最后离开教室的人 Rule Horror: The Last Person to Leave the Classroom After Evening Study 21Reads—Score—14d adds
- 117 The Yin-Yang Exorcist 阴阳摸诡人 I have two mothers, and neither of them is alive. The moment I was born, a heavenly dog swallowed the moon, blood rained from the sky, every beast bowed its head, and ghosts wailed... 781Reads8.7Score10114d adds
- 118 The Skinning Ghost 扒皮鬼 (Traditional supernatural horror + extreme horror + multiple twists + mystery + entirely handcrafted) Lately, I've been having nightmares every night. A fortune-teller said I might have a ghost clinging to me. He told me about a forbidden folk ritual: Put on a pair of worn underwear over your head, and it will block a ghost's sight. That night, I got home and followed his advice, half believing it. My girlfriend came back to the room after washing up and stared blankly at where I was. "Where... 64.2kReads8.3Score7k14d adds
- 119 The Supreme Taoist: Peerless Daoist Master 道门太上：绝世道长 Clad in a Daoist robe, I walk among the people, driving out every evil under heaven... Humans, ghosts, demons, monsters, gods, immortals, and strange beings: no matter how many I eliminate, I cannot purge the evil thoughts in my heart. Meet kindness with kindness, meet evil and become a demon. The arts of the Daoist tradition shall be the strongest! (Not an invincible protagonist story. Read with caution. No female lead!) 99Reads7.0Score—14d adds
- 120 Death Began at School 死亡从学校开始了 Ghosts are the product of an imbalance between yin and yang. In this vast world, people are all different in character, and their souls are just as varied after death. The virtuous return to pure lands and enjoy the blessings of the afterlife; the wicked and violent turn into vengeful spirits, their resentment gathering until it takes the form of a ghost. These specters wander between yin and yang, but most conceal their forms and rarely appear before the living. [No cultivation, no System, no h 311Reads—Score—14d adds
- 121 Tomb-Raiding Mysteries: The Sand-Sifting Manual 盗墓疑云：淘沙谱 My fate is unusual. I lost one hun and one po soul when I was young, and through a twist of fate, I entered the tomb-raiding business. Following clues left behind by the ancients in The Sand-Seeking Manual, I ventured to desert cities, the ghost kingdom of western Hunan, the divine realm of Kunlun, and more... Gradually, I began to recover the souls I had lost. As my memories resurfaced, I discovered that the mastermind behind every scheme was none other than myself! Qin Yu and I went from broth 247Reads8.1Score—14d adds
- 122 Upholding Justice in Heaven's Name 替天行道 Yin cannot thrive alone, and yang cannot exist by itself. I grew up in the countryside, left behind by my parents and raised by my grandfather. All his life, Grandpa was either helping widows and orphaned girls or on his way to help them. So, for as long as I can remember, I heard the villagers cursing him behind his back. Then one day, a stranger in a burial shroud asked me a question. A tree without bark but with a soul is bound to die. What happens to a person with skin but no soul? The relat 3kReads8.9Score24914d adds
- 123 I Tamed Countless Vengeful Ghosts, and Came Down from the Mountain as the Strongest in the World 收服万千厉鬼，我下山即人间最强 [Standalone Stories + Supernatural Horror + Folk Customs + Feng Shui and Mysticism + Mild Frights + Mind-Blowing Twists] I was adopted by my master as a child and grew up in the mountains, learning all kinds of ghost-hunting techniques. Since I never had any playmates, I thought I was a total pushover. Later, I descended the mountain on my master’s orders and met someone with a bizarre fate. His face clearly showed he should have died long ago, yet he was still alive and well! A strange greenhou 1.5kReads8.0Score10414d adds
- 124 Beasts Trapped in a Small Space 方寸困兽 A star basketball player vanishes in midair as he leaps for a dunk. A spatial distortion, or a supernatural force? Yuyang, a history student, accidentally forms a symbiotic bond with Huaiyan, a thousand-year-old evil spirit known as the “Wall Monk.” He becomes a “demon beacon,” a target coveted by all sides. When a mysterious organization sets its sights on his roommate, Yuyang is forced into a vast conspiracy revolving around ancient feng shui arts. Facing the mastermind who manipulates fate, Y 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 125 The Sealed Cave Behind the Mountain: I Became the Village's Soul Guardian 后山囚洞：我成了全村守魂人 After accidentally entering a century-old forbidden site in the back mountains, Jiang Ningyue unexpectedly inherits a fated duty and becomes the village’s only soul guardian. A deep, secluded prison cave suppresses countless wrongfully dead spirits. Ancient village rules conceal secrets unknown to outsiders, while turmoil erupts along the boundary between Yin and Yang, and one eerie calamity follows another. Generations of cave guardians have borne endless suffering, and a century of tangled gru 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 126 Eerie Revival: I Was Born Bad 诡异复苏：我是天生坏种 The rating was just posted and will gradually rise [Psychosis]+ [Invisible Killings]+ [Everyone Is Evil]+ [A Brand-New Supernatural Setting]+ [Selfish Protagonist]+ [Only Twenty Chapters of Oppression]+ [No CP] “10, 9, 8…” The voice in Gao Sheng's head counted down for three whole years. At last, it reached zero. The next second, a prank message popped up in the class group chat. [Today is the seventh day since Teacher Zhao Yuliang died. Forward this message to five groups for good luck. If you 1.3kReads8.8Score21914d adds
- 127 Making a Wish to a Ghost 向鬼许愿 A school where everyone has vanished. A company that serves ghosts. A city crawling with vengeful spirits. A mountain of weeping where yin and yang are turned upside down. … In an age when paranormal phenomena run rampant, Gu Shan possesses a terrifying wish-granting machine that can crush any supernatural incident. But each wish also carves an even deeper despair. “After you make your tenth wish, we’ll meet again in a world without pain.” (The original title of this book was The Tenth Wish.) 4.9kReads7.9Score46814d adds
- 128 Myriad Worlds: Starting with a Divine Immortal Compendium 诸天：开局一本神仙通鉴 [The Myriad Worlds] [Slaying Demons and Exorcising Evil] [Mystery and the Supernatural] [Out-of-the-Box Ideas] [The Seventy-Two Earthly Fiend Arts] [The Thirty-Six Heavenly Spirits Arts] After transmigrating into Liaozhai, I thought I'd be courting female ghosts. Instead, the innkeeper wanted to stew me, zombies wanted to bite me to death, and monsters lined up to eat me. Luckily, my golden finger came through: slay a demon and get a supernatural ability! Swordsmanship, Netherwalking, Spirit Com 100Reads—Score—14d adds
- 129 Spirit-Seeking Case Files 访灵笔录 [Standalone stories + Supernatural horror + Thrills + Folk customs + Lighthearted fun + Ensemble cast + Nonstop ghost-hunting action!] Lawyer Quan is on the verge of death after a car accident. At his most desperate moment, he encounters Yin Cangyi, a netherworld judge tasked with collecting evil spirits. To stay alive, Quan Ning strikes a deal with the judge, paying with years of his life. But the price of this lifeline, borrowed on credit, is beyond anything he could have imagined! An evil spi 774Reads8.3Score18814d adds
- 130 My Master Gave Me a Car for Investigating the Supernatural 师父传我一辆看事儿车 A thousand-year-old van? Built by hand from scratch [Traditional horror]➕ [Even more immersive as an audiobook]➕ [Uncovering the truth about my origins] Greetings, dear readers! [Traditional supernatural horror, primal fear] The original experience of horror is the fear a person feels when experiencing it firsthand. [First person, highly atmospheric] Give me a chance to tell this story from my own point of view. [Uncovering the truth about my origins] Along the way, I met many people. “The gates 14Reads—Score—14d adds
- 131 Major Paranormal Events in China 中国民间灵异大事件 Major Chinese Folk Supernatural Cases is based on real supernatural incidents. Its contents are terrifying, mysterious, eerie, and suspenseful, with no more scientifically reasonable explanation to this day! Each chapter of this book tells a supernatural fantasy tale, with bizarre, chilling, and gripping plots. We hope readers will tune in and enjoy! 301Reads7.2Score22714d adds
- 132 I Blundered into a Horror World, Only to Find That All the Bosses Were Lamps 误入恐怖世界，没想到BOSS全是灯 I stumbled into a world of horror, only to find that every BOSS was a lamp. 10Reads—Score—14d adds
- 133 I Love Your Numbness, I Love Your Spice, I Love You Till My Stomach Gives Out 爱你的麻，爱你的辣，爱得老胃直拉胯 I love your numbing spice, I love your heat, I love you so much my stomach’s a mess 6Reads—Score—14d adds
- 134 Please Don’t Be Afraid 请不要害怕 [Subverting Tropes + Infinite Flow + No Female Lead + Mild Horror] “Captain Wang, I clearly buried her, but… but I saw her in the backyard again!” “How did she die?” “It had nothing to do with me. She… she killed herself!” “She… she just didn’t want to be cremated…” “Then… what is that thing in the backyard?” “I… I don’t know.” “Can she see us? Can she hear our voices?” “And is she dangerous?” … “As for ghosts, I have only one piece of advice for everyone…” “If you happen to run into one, pleas 31.4kReads8.5Score1.5k14d adds
- 135 Ghosts in Pieces 散装见鬼 Do you believe there are ghosts in this world? I think that question is as impossible to answer as whether there are dragons in this world. The answer you hear most often is: Believe in them, and they exist. Don’t believe in them, and they don’t. But if you ask me, my answer is simple: Yes! Not because I believe, but because I can see them. Of course, I wasn’t able to see them from birth. It all goes back to the strange experience I had when I was six... 20Reads—Score—14d adds
- 136 Nightmare Game 梦魇游戏 [Mystery + Semi-Infinite Flow + No Female Lead + Light Ensemble Cast + Original Setting + Protagonist Is an NPC + Faction Conflict + Everyone Is Smart + Slow Burn + Light Lovecraftian Horror + Decisive and Ruthless] Reporters deliver the news. [Reporters] report the truth. Yin Lu transmigrated. He ended up in Nightmare Game, a full-immersion horror game with an official reported death rate of 3% but an actual death rate of fifty-fifty, and became an NPC. The good news: He's a five-star mini-bos 12kReads9.0Score1.7k14d adds
- 137 The Ancient Tomb Code 古墓密码 I was sentenced to life in prison for tomb raiding. I thought that was bad enough, but then The Dragon Head Maze, the Flying Ancient House, the ghost ship at sea... They all led me to a huge secret. “Open this door. Everything you want to know and everything you want is inside.” 5.2kReads8.1Score76014d adds
- 138 Strange Yin-Yang Tales: A Half-Immortal’s Records 阴阳诡事：半仙诡录 [This is no ordinary supernatural story. It’s all about horror and suspense: no mindless power fantasy, just yin-yang taboos, the Grinning Fiend, the Ghost Bride’s Gown, eerie shadows in an ancient mansion, and the Mandarin Duck Pendant. If it’s not good, you can break my legs!!] There’s no shortage of bizarre happenings between the worlds of yin and yang. The Grinning Fiend: what unknowable resentment lies behind that sinister face? The thousand-year-old fox: what cunning schemes hide beneath h 1.2kReads—Score—14d adds
- 139 Thanks for Asking, My Inherited Apartment Is Full of Ghost Stories 谢邀，我继承的公寓全是怪谈 [Single male lead, no romance, supernatural. The male lead isn’t strong or particularly satisfying to read about, and he’s indecisive. I’m warning you in advance, so if it’s not your thing, please move along.] The living should keep their distance from eerie tales whenever possible. When Yin Lan was little, his grandfather warned him of this. Yet that same grandfather left him a family home full of strange rumors after he died. Driven by curiosity and hoping to find out why his father and gran 1.1kReads9.1Score12114d adds
- 140 Passerby: Secrets of the Ancient Scroll 过路人：古卷秘相 Shen Xun, guardian of the cycle of reincarnation, suppresses evil spirits and keeps the balance between yin and yang. His time is running out, and he must pass on the guardians' legacy as soon as possible. The first successor is Lin Jian, who possesses a supernatural camera. The evil spirits have already set their sights on her. As Shen Xun reaches the foot of the stairs, he senses a pair of eyes watching him from behind. 4Reads—Score—14d adds
- 141 Infinite Nightmares: I Have a Pair of Ghost Ears 无限噩梦：我有一对鬼耳 [Infinite Flow], [Mild Horror], [No Female Lead], [Survive by the Skin of Your Teeth], [Unconventional Turtle Soup Riddles], [Nontraditional Rule-Based Horror], [Not a Wish-Fulfillment Story, Not Invincible] [Slow-paced, packed with details, and full of complex plot twists!] [Read at your own risk if that's not your thing!!!] I sat on a deserted street in the dead of night, listening to them whisper. I was a little confused. Wasn't I the only one here? (Instance 1: Prolonging Life) A bit lon 27kReads7.9Score3.3k14d adds
- 142 Divine Art of Reading the Heavens 窥天神测 Words spring from the heart, and writing gives the heart form. The characters a person writes are intricately connected to their fortunes, misfortunes, and fate. Thus, the art of fortune-telling through written characters came into being. My journey down this path began when I accidentally fell into my grandmother's coffin, only to discover a young woman inside, her clothes in disarray… 985Reads8.8Score10614d adds
- 143 The Deadly Taboos of Horror 惊悚死人禁忌 [Definitely not ordinary paranormal fiction. Focused on horror and suspense, not mindless wish fulfillment. Folk tales of the supernatural, ghost babies. If you don’t like it after reading, feel free to criticize it.] A mountain village shrouded in mystery is beset by one strange incident after another. A coffin that cannot be lifted at a funeral, children mysteriously drowning, and the question of why a water ghost has appeared. What truth lies behind the deaths? A baby’s anguished cries ring o 141Reads—Score—14d adds
- 144 The House of the Dead 空亡屋 There is a kind of house in this world whose door is always half open and half closed. The open half is for the living to enter. The closed half is for the dead. This kind of house is called a House of the Lost. As it happens, I'm the owner of one. In three years, I've encountered both clingy ghosts and evil people who cling to ghosts. 780Reads8.7Score12514d adds
- 145 Fifth Watch 五更 The stories my grandpa used to tell me were probably meant to scare me into staying put, or maybe to lull me to sleep. He always told them with such conviction and vivid detail that I often found myself dreaming of the very scenes he had lived through. I met the old flower-growing woman on Yinshan Mountain, and one villager after another from Sangen Village. Their faces were gloomy and strange, and their deeds served as a warning, reminding us that “the gods are watching from three feet above yo 692Reads7.2Score10014d adds
- 146 Qingshan Temple Is at Your Service 青山观竭诚为您服务 [Coming-of-Age + Original Worldbuilding + Mystery + Mild Horror + Comedy + No Romance] As the protagonist of this book, he has none of the following: overwhelming strength, a stubborn and unyielding will, S+ luck, or a detached attitude that treats money like dirt. Inheriting a Taoist temple at a young age after his master dies, sweeping aside all manner of monsters and vermin, and following the classic male lead’s path to the pinnacle of life? Not even in his wildest dreams. All he can do is ta 3.1kReads9.1Score61314d adds
- 147 The Midnight Spirit Shop 深夜灵店 I'm neither a yin-yang master nor an exorcist, but I do have an unusual left eye. I run a shop that opens only at midnight, serving customers who have run into special troubles. A little shop, a cup of tea for a guest, and so my story begins... 1.7kReads8.6Score19414d adds
- 148 The White Dragon Horse Medium 白龙出马仙 Break through seven trials, meet with sudden disaster, make a blood sacrifice of an infant, refine corpse oil. One by one, long-lost secret arts resurface, and strange, mysterious events begin unfolding throughout my journey... That lantern made of human skin holds captive the youth I can never return to. 1.1kReads9.1Score10014d adds
- 149 My Years Selling Buddhist Amulets in Thailand 我在泰国卖佛牌的那几年 A lot of people believe in ghosts, and a lot of people don't. Before I went to Thailand, I was just a broke nobody. But then I somehow started selling Buddhist amulets... You didn't know there were ghosts inside them? 10.1kReads9.0Score1.6k14d adds
- 150 The Spirit-Eating Notebook 噬灵笔记 [Infinite Flow + mind-bending puzzles + ghostly mysteries + survival] A strange notebook, and yet it is a doorway to hell. The cursed are haunted, hunted, and dragged into an endless abyss of terror. Ghosts close in at every turn, and death is just around the corner. No one can escape unscathed. A group of ordinary people bound together by a curse must awaken in the depths of despair, uncover the notebook’s secret, and put an end to this terrifying game with their own hands. Kill the ghosts, or 1Reads—Score—14d adds
