Novels like The Endless Underworld
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as The Endless Underworld, best match first.
- 1 Now That I’m Reborn, Who’d Still Run with the Underworld? 都重生了，谁还混社会啊！ Underworld #Reborn Big Shot #Making Money #Power and Influence #Going Straight #No Simping #Ruthless Rise Qi Wei, a legendary underworld boss, took his own life in despair when the police sprang an ambush with the help of an undercover officer. When he came to, he had returned to 2008. Would he keep living in darkness, joining the criminal underworld that would one day be judged by the law? Or would he settle for an ordinary life, going to school and taking exams for government jobs and graduate 14Reads—Score—Shelves
- 2 Northeast Storm: A Gangster Legend 东北风云之黑道传奇 With my brothers by my side and blades and guns in hand, I’d like to see who in this underworld gets to call himself the boss! If we don’t enter the underworld, so be it. But once we do, every thug will bow to us and every boss will clear the way. We’ll become the... heavens of this underworld. 122Reads—Score—Shelves
- 3 My Life in the Underworld 我的江湖人生 I, Li Qiang, have made my way in the underworld on three things: being ruthless, being loyal, and having plenty of brothers… The jianghu is a world full of legends and strife, where blades flash and chivalry meets tenderness. 8Reads—Score—Shelves
- 4 Gray Zone: Embers 灰域：余烬 A school-set gang story with one female lead. Not a wish-fulfillment power fantasy. No absolute good or evil. Set in a parallel world with no connection to reality. The world has never been simply black and white. Most people live somewhere in the middle, neither thriving nor dying, in a gray zone. We hold knives in our hands and softness in our hearts. We can be neither saints nor demons, only struggle to live in endless gray until we're reduced to ashes. 4Reads—Score—Shelves
- 5 The Underworld: Bullied, I United the Whole Gangland 黑道：被霸凌的我一统江湖 A protagonist who grows over time, and the founding of a power Bullied by others, I received help and unexpectedly embarked on the path of the underworld. From that moment on, my life was rewritten. Wherever this proud young man goes, he will leave his mark! —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 6 Tales of the Northeast Underworld: The Millennium 东北江湖往事之千禧年 With the arrival of the new millennium, society began developing at breakneck speed. A particular era shaped a particular group of people, each with a particular livelihood. Some seized the opportunities of the times and prospered, while others stubbornly clung to their ways and lost both their lives and their names... 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 7 Dragon-Riding Yakuza 骑龙极道 Gangsters + business wars + realism + period piece + inspired by personal experiences Autumn, 2010, in the city of Bingang. Eighteen-year-old Lin Shen is knocked to the ground by a fist born of jealousy, with nowhere to turn for help. When every legitimate path is blocked, a key is offered from the darkness: “If you want to live, take this road.” He takes it!!! From then on, the tide of the times carries him along: from the quagmire of Bingang to a foothold in Pengcheng, then painting Yangcheng —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 8 The Underworld’s Mad Dragon: I Took Down the Jianghu Bosses All by Myself 黑道狂龙：我一个人砍翻江湖大佬 [Underworld + officialdom + domination + ruthless action + multiple heroines] Gong Ming is a discharged soldier who once skinned a man alive and a lone hero who earned countless military honors. A twist of fate drew him into this turbulent jianghu. With his ruthless creed of "If you do it, finish the job," and his sharp mind, he quickly made a name for himself in the jianghu. In this dark world, he met a group of like-minded brothers. They stood by justice and feared no powerful enemies, fightin —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 9 Xiao Sanfeng's Life in the Jianghu 萧三峰的江湖人生 Tough guy Xiao Sanfeng has feared nothing since childhood, machete in hand as he makes his way through the world! After unexpectedly discovering the mystery of his origins, he sets off on a one-way road into the martial world. Watch him cut his way through every obstacle with a single blade and rise to the pinnacle of life! 484Reads—Score—Shelves
- 10 My Years in the Gray Market 我干灰产那几年 After spending two years in prison for illegal business dealings, I picked up my pen in 2025 and wrote about my own experiences. After only two chapters, I went back in for another six months. Now, speaking as someone who’s been through it, I want to lay out the truth about how I went astray and make clear the hard lessons I learned from falling twice. I hope my personal experience can serve as a warning to others: know your limits and stay on the right path. Don’t let greed or wishful thinking —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 11 From the Start: Sentenced to Prison, I Begin a Jianghu Legend 开局：我被判入狱，开启江湖传奇 [Dongguan] [Multiple Women] [Underworld] [Feel-Good] Prisons are full of hidden talents. The jianghu is a world of bloodshed and turmoil. Lin Yang went to prison because of a woman, then fought his way through the jianghu for another. Please give it a read. Thank you. —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 12 Underworld Chronicles: The Road Through the Gangland 黑道往事：黑道风云路 This book tells the story of Liu Yong, the Northeast underworld boss, and his years of turmoil in the jianghu. It blends fact and fiction, hearsay and rumor, with a touch of artful historical embellishment. Told as a novel, the story is entertaining and gripping, giving you something to pass the time with after a meal while offering a glimpse of what the real jianghu is like, and how complicated human nature can be. This book is a real thrill to read! Liu Yong is a name that carries weight. Whet 469Reads—Score—Shelves
- 13 Zhou Bufan’s Road to a Triumphant Rise in the Underworld 周不凡的黑道逆袭路 [No dogs are harmed in this book.] [This book is based on real events. Any resemblance is purely coincidental.] A hopeless case? A pushover anyone can pick on? When Zhou Bufan, once trampled underfoot, enters the chaotic North City covered in scars, all he wants is to keep his head down. But in this wretched world, even staying alive is too much to hope for! When fists rain down on him again, when his dignity is crushed once more, he can’t take it anymore. He won’t take it anymore! “Either live —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 14 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—Shelves
- 15 Heir to the Underworld: Xia Yu of Tianmen 黑道继承者之天门夏宇 Xia Yu, originally named Li Tian, is 18 and a member of Tianmen, a gang company in Haizhou. After offending someone he should never have crossed, he is forced to flee to a special school in Nanwu under his new identity, Xia Yu, accompanied by two loyal underlings. But this school is an educational institution in name only: in reality, it is a training ground where Nanwu’s four major gangs groom their successors, and the gangs’ junior leaders vie for power behind the scenes. Reborn with the hard- 1.1kReads—Score—Shelves
- 16 Tales of the Underworld in Dongguan 莞城江湖往事 The jianghu isn’t a world of free-spirited heroes, revenge, and fine clothes atop spirited steeds. It’s a filthy, chaotic reality twisted by darkness! I, Zhang Xingheng, entered the jianghu to play the game of schemes and use my brains. Everything in the world was part of my calculations, including myself! So, you ask why I succeeded? Because every big shot in the jianghu fell victim to my schemes! They fell amid blades, guns, and blood! From the moment I stepped into the jianghu, every big shot 11.4kReads6.8Score651Shelves
- 17 The Cool Goddess Who Took Me into the Underworld Is Actually an Undercover Agent? 带我混江湖的冷艳女神，竟是卧底？ Two years in prison for a crime he didn't commit taught him the ways of all walks of life: one hand appraises antiques, the other picks pockets. Once a young laborer on a construction site, now Lord Bai of the Rongmen! Money debts are hard to repay, but debts of love can be even deadlier. The icy beauty Sister Jing, the haughty A Hui... There are unseen clashes of blades and shadows, and women of every kind... 10Reads—Score—Shelves
- 18 Ten Years Later, I Became a Gang Boss One Step at a Time 十年后，我一步一步成为帮派大佬 Ten years ago, I, Lei Zhen, was nothing but a good-for-nothing whom everyone despised... But remember this: You may look down on an old man with white hair, but never look down on a young man just because he’s poor... Ten years later, a mysterious gang quietly rose from the shadows of the city. Its leader, Lei Zhen, used his exceptional leadership and iron-fisted methods to carve out a path for his men through the city. But their rise drew the covetous attention of other powers, and one bloody c —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 19 A Man of the Jianghu 江湖混的人 What kind of people are these? They’re a rowdy bunch, a bunch who think they’re better than everyone else. The brothers we ran wild with back in the day. When our youth had passed and we looked back, some familiar faces were nowhere to be seen. Some had gone far away, some had faded into silence, and some were still eating from the same communal pot. Why? Because the road we took was one we could never turn back from. 1.4kReads8.2Score—Shelves
- 20 Restless Youth 躁动少年 My name is Lin Yi. In middle school, I used to throw my weight around alongside the big brother I looked up to. But when I entered high school, I got beaten to a pulp. After meeting a group of dependable brothers, we started out at school and swore to conquer this ruthless city. As our influence grew and we grew stronger, we were drawn into a series of events we'd never had any contact with before. 168Reads—Score—Shelves
- 21 The Truman Show of the City 都市楚门 I’ll wait for you all to come back. When that day comes, I’ll lead you back into Jinghai City and take it by storm! If we succeed, we’ll be crowned with glory! If we fail, we’ll be shattered to pieces! I’ll take you to the top of Jinghai City, where we can look down on everyone. Even if we’re shattered in the end, at least we’ll have shone brightly in this world! Do you want to follow me and shine like meteors for one brief moment, or live an ordinary, mediocre life? Tell me, loud and clear! Shi —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 22 Racing Through the 1990s: A Brothers' Legend 狂飙90年代：兄弟热血传奇 Crazy 90: A Legendary Brotherhood of Passion Set in Tiexi District, a major heavy-industry hub in Northeast China during the 1990s, this story follows Chen Mo, a boy from the bottom rung of society, as he and his brothers Li Jianjun and Wang Lei carve out a life together amid the tides of the times. At seventeen, Chen Mo is a “troublemaker” at Tiexi Technical School. His family is struggling: his father has been laid off, and his mother runs a street stall. Discrimination and bullying expose him 4Reads—Score—Shelves
- 23 I Tore Open the City's Dark Curtain 我撕开了都市黑幕 [Ensemble cast + underworld] This isn’t a power fantasy or a mindless story. Every character is fleshed out, and there are no absolute heroes or villains. People can be good and evil alike. All that matters is human nature and self-interest. If that bothers you, don’t read. A seemingly ordinary workplace dispute pushes a group of everyday people into the eye of the storm. Caught in the depths of this vast, dark whirlpool, where will they go from here? —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 24 I'm a Hoodlum: Two Strokes, One Vertical, That's How We Do Things! 老子是流氓，两横一竖就是干！ “Hello, my name is Fang Xiu. The ‘Xiu’ in ‘to the bitter end’!” In this bloody underworld where people prey on one another, Fang Xiu is swept against his will into one whirlpool after another! Only after stepping into it does he realize that the underworld is a bottomless vat of dye, filled with schemes, treachery, and betrayal! By the time he wants to turn back, he’s already sunk deep into the mire, with no way out! All he has left are the few brothers at his side, standing shoulder to shoulder 31Reads—Score—Shelves
- 25 The Jianghu Madman 江湖狂人 Personality determines fate. When Chen Yuanshan overcomes his fear, the underworld gains a few more madmen. Absolutely ruthless and decisive: one disagreement, and he pulls a gun! The plot isn’t melodramatic, and the pacing is slow-burn. I’m a new writer, so my writing is limited. Please be understanding if it isn’t very good. 448Reads—Score—Shelves
- 26 My Wild Youth: From Being Bullied to Becoming a Gang Boss 混过的青春：从被欺负到黑帮大佬 How does a timid boy who's bullied every day gradually rediscover the courage he lost in his youth? How does he finally redeem himself? And how does he rise step by step to the pinnacle of the underworld? What secrets lie behind it all? Find out in The Days We Lived Through. 5.3kReads—Score349Shelves
- 27 The Toughest Man in Yunnan 云滇第一狠人 {Urban Fiction + Power Fantasy + Nonstop Action} In high school, an accident landed me in prison for five years. Thanks to the guidance of a benefactor, I got out and worked my way up from nothing. Build big! Rise again! Rule Yunnan! 441Reads6.6Score—Shelves
- 28 The Jianghu of Those Years 那些年的江湖 Quiet! Class is about to begin!!! At Uncle Two's shout, the hall and the streets packed with people fell completely silent. Just then, the young crowd parted, making way without being told. Wen Hua walked through, hearing his brothers call out to him as he passed. “Brother Hua!” “Greetings, Brother Hua.” 14Reads—Score—Shelves
- 29 A Life Gone Awry 错乱的人生路 This book tells the story of a young man from a county town in the 1990s who accidentally ends up on a path that was never meant to be his. The old days of the underworld are gone. (This story is entirely fictional. Do not take it as fact.) The book warns readers never to set foot on such a path, no matter what. Good and evil bring their own consequences, and fortune and misfortune follow one another. You must bear the consequences yourself; no one can do it for you. —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 30 Nie Lei, Qingdao's Crime Boss 青岛黑老大聂磊 Explore the rise of Nie Lei, Qingdao’s notorious crime boss. How did he go from a shoe-selling street vendor to a billionaire? How does a villain get made? His life was filled with controversy and underworld tales, yet why are people still so fascinated by his story today? Let’s delve into the real past of this underworld figure together. —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 31 Underworld Tales: The Ruthless Boss of Yuncheng 黑道往事之云城枭雄 After the 2002 college entrance exams, Ye Haonan scored high enough to get into a top university. Overjoyed, he was preparing to share the good news with his family when disaster struck at home. In that moment, he raised the axe in his hands and swung it at the criminals. It was clearly self-defense, yet he was sent to prison for exceeding its limits. From then on, his life changed beyond recognition. The well-behaved boy became a demon everyone feared... 310Reads7.1Score—Shelves
- 32 After Getting Kicked Off the Police Force, I Took Down the City’s Criminal Underworld 被警队开除后：我掀翻全城黑恶 Forced to take off the uniform I wore to defend the righteous path, I won’t join the underworld. I’ll punish it and fleece it. I devise clever schemes and turn their own force against them, specializing in fleecing underworld bosses. I’ll take ill-gotten gains, clear out their criminal territory, and settle every score. Today they ignore me. Tomorrow there won’t be anywhere left for the wicked to swagger. I’m Xiao Zhang. I do things with a swagger, and I’m the godfather to every thug in the city 48Reads—Score—Shelves
- 33 Reborn: A Life as a Powerful Tycoon 重生：一世枭雄 Back to 2002: Building a Perfect Life 67Reads5.7Score—Shelves
- 34 Wild Blade 野刀 [Modern underworld] + [Rise from the bottom] + [First-person narration] + [Ensemble cast] + [Brotherhood] + [Alternate timeline] As a boy, Wu Ye was an ant trampled into the mud. Unwilling to suffer the humiliation any longer, he took one knife and thirteen men and carved open the skies over Four Counties. From a bullied victim to the “Wild Blade” who commanded the three high schools; from settling scores on campus to bloody battles in the streets. He reached the top, only to be betr 5Reads—Score—Shelves
- 35 Dongjiang County: The Invisible Hand 东江县：无形之手 Li Jing, deputy head of the provincial investigative team, has barely arrived in Dongjiang County when she encounters a bizarre case: Zhang Meng, a construction contractor, beat a man to death in the street, yet at trial the victim’s family all changed their testimony. In a rundown teahouse in town, she runs into the boy she secretly loved back in school. Now he stoops, his fingernails caked with tea stains. When Li Jing takes out the graduation photo she has treasured for years, a flicker of em 2Reads—Score—Shelves
- 36 The Winds of Ye City 邺都风云 My father was dead, but his debts remained. 140,000 yuan, two people, one county town. Zhou Ye only wanted to study hard, but some people wouldn't let him. Why should a son have to pay off the mess his father left behind? He refused to accept it. Then He'd beat them into submission. 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 37 Changchun Underworld 长春黑道风云 The story follows the underworld bosses of Changchun from 1983 to 2000 and recounts their lives in the gang world. How did they rise from the bottom to become major underworld figures in Changchun? Over those dozen-plus years, one underworld boss after another took center stage. 3.2kReads7.5Score174Shelves
- 38 I Joined the Underworld to Pay Off My Debts, and Became a Big Shot 我，混黑道，从还债开始当大佬 After his father dies suddenly, leaving behind 300,000 yuan in debt, Lin Mo is forced to enter the rough-and-tumble underworld to pay it off. He becomes the least important underling in the Loyalty Hall. When he first arrives, he's mocked for his soft, delicate appearance and bullied by old hands. The Red Hair Gang, a rival outfit, also marks him as a thorn in its side. But no one knows that this seemingly meek young man hides a fierce streak and a calculating mind. When others make trouble fo —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 39 The Bright Moon Shines Over Guandong 明月照关东 (A realistic period setting, urban underworld, everyday life, calculating and ruthless protagonist, slow pace, not a mindless wish-fulfillment novel) Half a lifetime at the bottom, every step mired in hardship. Fate was never in his hands; nothing ever went the way he wanted. Caught up in turbulent times, he endured the treachery of human nature. There were roads he didn’t want to take, but with no choice, he could only fight his way upstream. Without a golden finger, an ordinary man struggles t 3Reads—Score—Shelves
- 40 The Bad Boy: The Tiger Returns to the Mountain 不良之纵虎归山 Ordinary student Chen Hu is forced to transfer schools after taking a knife for his brothers, only to stumble into the mire of Jinling's underworld... From school to the wider world, he befriends a band of brothers and steamrolls every obstacle in his path... Then he unexpectedly learns that his father was once the King of Jinling, betrayed by his brothers and driven into seclusion in Beiyuan. To avenge his father, Chen Hu sets out on a path of no return... 211Reads—Score—Shelves
- 41 Gusu's Dark Day: We Are the Kings of No. 15 High School 姑苏黑昼：我们才是十五中的天 Overnight, my family was slaughtered by the mysterious organization Ba Tian Pavilion. I transferred to Gusu No. 15 High School alone, wanting nothing more than to stay alive. But after I knocked out the so-called freshman-year bully with one punch at the dorm entrance, I was dragged into the whirlpool of the school’s hidden power struggles. At death’s door, my second brother, who was supposed to have died in Jinling, appeared before me as a sophomore and became the “cold-faced demon” feared by —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 42 The Old Days of Northern Jiangsu 苏北社会往事 This is not just a school story. It is a snapshot of an entire generation’s coming of age: On dignity: When fists become the “rules,” can books still defend our dignity? On choices: In the gray areas, how do we draw the line within ourselves? On leaving: That train ticket to Nanjing is the coming-of-age rite shared by every boy from northern Jiangsu. 3Reads—Score—Shelves
- 43 My Dad Is the Godfather, So It Makes Sense That I Run the World 我爹是教父，我只手遮天，很合理 I transmigrated, and ended up as the Godfather's son. Dark undercurrents swirl all around me, and danger lurks at every turn. Still, at least my dad sent me off to college. I thought I could stay clear of the trouble, but trouble came looking for me. Well, no choice now. Time to come clean. I'm done pretending. My dad's the Godfather. Is it really a problem if I act a little arrogant? Looking at all the powerful figures groveling at his feet, Ye Xingchen grinned brightly. “Standing before yo —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 44 I Don’t Know! Everyone Calls Me Boss When They Come Out 不知道啊！出来他们都叫我大哥 One day, when the tiger returns to the mountain, blood will stain half the sky. One day, when the dragon lifts its head, the Yellow River's waters will flow backward. Any resemblance is purely coincidental. I won't pad the word count. One female lead, no System, no invincible protagonist, passionate urban drama. (Every character in this ensemble cast has their own personality.) The world is in turmoil, and heroes rise in our generation. Two young men only want to live decent lives, but somehow g —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 45 The Langmen Trilogy: The Last Days of the Underworld 浪门三部曲之最后的江湖 (Not a wish-fulfillment novel, and the protagonist isn't invincible. Read at your own risk~) What is the jianghu? It's the ways of the world and human relationships. The real jianghu isn't street fights. It's drinking tea, listening to opera, and turning walnuts in your hands. Once in the jianghu, all are mere pawns, as old dynastic grudges play out in secret battles. Six jade pendants, six troubled fates. Brothers turn against one another and become enemies. Some are born to rule, some lose the 113Reads—Score—Shelves
- 46 Hongmen Brothers (Three-Book Set) 洪门兄弟（全三册） A gang, a city, an era; brothers, fathers and sons, lovers, and home and country. The gangland wars are flaring up once more on the Shanghai Bund! Two sworn brothers join forces to build a gang empire, only to be driven to love and hate each other by betrayal and a frame-up. When the storm passes, a new name rings out along the Huangpu River: the Hongmen! Hongmen Brothers 1: Sworn Brotherhood arrives, telling the story of the Hongmen’s birth and revealing a leader unlike any you have ever seen! 6Reads9.2Score—Shelves
- 47 The Fire Usurper: Ship Without a Shore 篡火者：无岸之舟 The flames of war left Chen Hao an orphan. San Francisco’s Chinatown in 1985: a land of chaos and gold. His second uncle took him in and looked after him. But in a foreign land, he endured scorn and humiliation! Should Chinese people really let others walk all over them? No! No! No! Stir up the storm, and turn into a dragon when the waters rise! Witness a Chinese man’s rise to godfather! —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 48 The Evil Lord Descends into the Abyss 邪主临渊 [Underworld] [Brotherhood] [Passionate] [The author is also a fan of Uncle Qin] I was bullied all through middle school. I thought things would get better in high school, but I was still bullied. Little by little, those people led me down a road of no return... My name is Mo Daoxie. Dao as in “principle,” and Xie as in “evil.” 4Reads—Score—Shelves
- 49 Underworld: My Childhood Friend and I Rule the Middle School 黑道：我和发小，制霸初中 [Positive Energy] [Underworld Intrigue] [Brotherhood] [Decisive and Ruthless] Some say brotherhood has no place in this day and age. That was, until they laid a hand on my childhood friend... Xie Wendong: A man of few words and a ruthless streak, he’s always the first to grab a brick when his childhood friend is bullied. Liu Chuang: Hot-tempered and never blinks when taking a bullet for someone. Xie Wendong is the only man he’ll ever follow. 128Reads—Score—Shelves
- 50 The Thug Gets Out of Prison 暴徒出狱 Before I went to prison, I was a big shot everyone feared. After getting out, I wanted to live a different kind of life. I just wanted to be an ordinary person, live a quiet life, and work hard to make money. I was ready to let bygones be bygones. But I wanted to let them go, and they kept pushing me. So I had no choice but to fight back with everything I had. 28Reads—Score—Shelves
