Novels like Be the Cruelest One
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Be the Cruelest One, best match first.
- 1 Rascal High School 痞子高校 My name is Zhang Yan. After graduating from junior high, I started high school at No. 5 Middle School. The days that followed were nothing like what I had hoped for. It was as if an abyss was staring at me, and I had to use every ounce of strength to contend with it: falling into the abyss, struggling within it, and finally climbing back out. 17Reads—Score—14d adds
- 2 The River-Crosser: A Fugitive 过江龙：亡命之徒 His parents died in a mining disaster, and he was forced out of work. Wang Yue only wanted to tend his barbecue stall and live quietly and honestly with his brothers. But the son of a powerful family kept pushing him, refusing to leave him even a way to survive! With nowhere left to retreat, he would retreat no further! (This book has a gritty style and realistic plot. Proceed with caution.) 55kReads8.2Score3.9k14d adds
- 3 The Troublemaking Youth: Snow in Northern Liao 刺头少年之北辽雪 [Underworld + delinquent students + the underworld heir’s comeback + one heroine + school life] Disclaimer: This is a strictly underworld story, with no cultivation or anything like that. My name is Lin Yuxuan. My dad went to prison, and my mom died. When Yang Long and the others started humiliating me, I knew the world would never show me any mercy again... 3Reads—Score—14d adds
- 4 The Ruthless Thug 悍徒 [Passionate action + no goody-two-shoes + decisive and ruthless + you can read without thinking too hard + wish-fulfillment story] I know plenty of big shots, but they all call me Boss. I have connections everywhere, and I rule the underworld. I hold the entire criminal world in the palm of my hand! Let me tell you about my years in the underworld! 31Reads7.1Score—14d adds
- 5 From Scavenger to Underworld Kingpin 从捡垃圾到黑道枭雄 The boy who scavenges for food in the garbage is destined to become a king through blood and fire. Lin Bei, an orphan abandoned by the world, curls up on a park bench. His only chance to survive is rummaging through foul-smelling trash cans. With winter approaching, he sets his sights on the “garbage mountain” in the west of the city, the place no one dares touch because it’s “Brother Gou’s” lifeline. When more than a dozen dark figures surround him and cold fists rain down on his head, the wild 1.5kReads7.3Score13214d adds
- 6 Fortunes in a Chaotic Era: The Winds of the Desert 乱世偏财：大漠风云 In 1992, a country boy set off for Beijing with two hundred yuan in his pocket. A fortune-teller said he was destined to make money through shady ventures, and would never stay on the straight and narrow. He believed him. From then on, Wang Lei was the name his family knew him by, while Damo was what the underworld called him. Street vending, steel trading, opening karaoke bars, fighting for territory... Three women, three ill-fated romances, one high-stakes gamble. Those who play by the rules a —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 7 The Reckless Youth: Wang Hao Reborn 不良之年少轻狂之王浩重生 Wang Hao never imagined that after a bullet from his enemy ended his life, he would be reborn in his middle-school days. When he opens his eyes again, he’s still the obscure “Rat” from Dongguan No. 1 Middle School, the kid everyone picks on. But this time, he has returned with the fire and memories of his past life. His old brother Ye Zhan is still the same buzz-cut hothead who acts decisively and calls him “Haozi” with complete trust. Their big brother Yu Chengfei is still ruthless and decisive 1.4kReads—Score10214d adds
- 8 On the Run 亡命天涯 A story from the jianghu, born of mental illness, so subversive it beggars the imagination. Mental illness. Dissociative identity disorder. Two completely different personalities. In the winter of 1982, a man left someone else’s house carrying a child. On his way home, he was shot dead, and the child was grazed across the cheek. In a single night, the child became an orphan. Just as a teacher was about to take him in, a man who claimed to be a friend of his father adopted him. In the end, he too 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 9 The Martial World: The Wild Heavenly Fragrance 江湖：混世天香 The martial world is about both fighting and human relationships. If you know how to get by, you can live in luxury, surrounded by beauty. I always thought I was an honest kid. People bullied me from elementary school all the way through vocational school. A guy who was five feet two inches tall had me, at six feet one inch, pinned to the ground and rubbing my face in it. It wasn’t until my biological father came to take me home that I found out how much power and how many connections I had behi 13.8kReads8.4Score1.8k14d adds
- 10 Bad Boy: The Sequel to No Rules, No Limits 不良之无法无天续写 Our youth was bold and unruly, and in our reckless years, brotherhood always came first! The martial world was full of excitement, but also rife with bloodshed, schemes, and deceit! Brothers stood by each other through life and death, but there was no shortage of backstabbing and betrayal! Loyalty endured with righteous strength, but even heroes could fall short and meet an untimely end! Power could make you stand above the crowd, but it also brought drunken excess and the ruin of everything you 1.2kReads—Score—14d adds
- 11 Who Can Stand Against Me? 谁与争锋 Life and death don't matter. If you don't like it, fight! Life and death don't matter. If you don't like it, fight! The Wolf Fang is out. Who can stand against us! This novel is also known as: Everyone, Stand Up and Salute the Big Shot! 8.1kReads6.4Score10014d adds
- 12 Underworld Days 江湖岁月 [Pure Gangster Fiction + Ensemble Cast + Realistic + Underdog Comeback + First Person] They say life in the underworld means living by the blade. I don’t care about that. All I know is that in my second year of high school, people called me a bastard and held me down to beat me. Calling the police was useless. The school did nothing. I couldn’t even afford to get my injuries examined. Then I took matters into my own hands. One brick, and I smashed Zhou Lei. From that day on, I was no longer Wang 3Reads—Score—14d adds
- 13 The Reckless Youth: A Passionate Heart 不良之热血方刚 Underworld + school life + passion + brotherhood + supremacy struggles + multiple heroines One day, I’ll rise like a dragon and conquer the underworld in a river of blood. Through flashing blades and piles of bones, I’ll stand at the front to shield my brothers. Shen Xiao, a freshman in high school, looked so frail that on his first day, a teacher made an example of him in front of the whole class. After class, he went to the restroom. As soon as he stepped out of a stall, he was kicked to the f 3Reads—Score—14d adds
- 14 The Hundred Shaman Taboos 百巫禁忌 > Lu Ming never imagined that after reaching the peak of the virtual game Epoch, he would be repeatedly challenged by Chen Chuan, his strongest rival, who would stop at nothing to kill him. > At first, he thought Chen Chuan only wanted the ultimate artifact in his possession. > Until he accidentally discovered that every time Chen Chuan fought him, he deliberately avoided Lu Ming’s fatal weaknesses. > An indescribable chill slowly crept up his spine. Why did his opponent understand him better th —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 15 After Being Hunted, I Went on a Rampage! 被通缉后，我彻底杀疯了！ After three years at a military academy and three years as a special forces soldier, Lu Chuan chooses revenge without hesitation after his younger sister’s death! Now wanted by the authorities, the young man makes his way to Wan City. What kind of legendary path will he forge there?! In the days of youth, ride with pride and fine clothes; never let your best years pass without purpose! May you wander for half your life and still return as the same young soul... —Reads—Score114d adds
- 16 Underworld Storm: Rising on Campus 黑道风云之校园崛起 The protagonist, Chen Yu, was a student whose life revolved around campus. But after a series of chance encounters, he was swept into the vortex of underworld conflicts and unexpectedly embarked on a perilous quest to uncover mysterious powers. Along the way, Chen Yu meets companions with wildly different personalities and extraordinary skills, including Ye Feng and Black Panther. He also encounters a mysterious old man who knows many secrets. Together, they struggle to survive in the underworld 56Reads—Score—14d adds
- 17 The Pinnacle of the Unpeopled World: The Pure Dust Arc 无人之巅清尘篇 The story of Ye Qingchen, the one who stands alone at the summit: You are the peerless genius of your city, blessed with a boxing talent no one can match. At last, the year you turn eighteen, you claim the national boxing championship... 5Reads—Score—14d adds
- 18 Every Delinquent Knows Yucheng Fei 不良无人不识宇城飞 This story isn't just about Chen Fei's time at vocational college. It also follows the difficulties Wang Hao faces after returning from the United Arab Emirates. Another storm of blood and violence is brewing, but Heaven won't favor them again. The success they've achieved is already an incredible stroke of luck. During that clash between Yucheng Fei and Longcheng, Yucheng Fei suffered devastating losses. His brothers were killed, wounded, forced to retire, or scattered. That operation nearly co 275Reads6.1Score—14d adds
- 19 Underworld Storm: The Iron-Blooded Road of the Martial World 黑道风云：铁血江湖路 [I'm Ma Tiejun. I'm a man of few words, but if you cross me, I'll take you on.] To make it in the underworld, you have to build up your business and earn plenty of money in the early days; shift into legitimate industries and establish yourself in the middle; then gradually clean up your act so you can walk away unscathed. The road through the underworld is hard, and few make it out alive, but I have no choice. I can only grit my teeth and keep going... Now that I'm on this ship, I'll be the fie 7.8kReads7.8Score68514d adds
- 20 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
- 21 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
- 22 I Chopped Until My Blade Chipped, and You Say I Hit the Wrong Person? 刀都砍崩了，你说我砍错了人 [Underworld + passionate jianghu + ruthless and decisive + a true kingpin] To stand up for the girl I loved, I blinded the village bully in one eye and spent three years in prison. When I got out, the goddess never came to greet me. Instead, I received an invitation to her wedding to the village bully... The jianghu is colorful and exciting, but it’s also rife with bloodshed, schemes, and deception. Brothers may share life and death, but there’s no shortage of betrayal, infighting, and estrangem 16.3kReads7.8Score1.1k14d adds
- 23 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
- 24 Starting in High School, I Conquer the Underworld 从高校开始，制霸江湖风云 [Hot-Blooded Battles] + [Revenge] + [The Underworld] + [Brotherhood] There are no tears in a blood-soaked underworld. Status and money are the source of all savage violence. Born in the mud, you have to smash your way out with your own flesh and blood. A letter from his father reveals a blood feud that has been buried for eighteen years. Chu Yuan transfers to a delinquent school called Longyin, a place rife with savage violence, divided among warring factions, where the strong prey on the weak a 12Reads—Score—14d adds
- 25 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
- 26 Bad Boy: The Fearless Youth of Yu Chengfei 不良之年少轻狂之宇城飞 The story follows Yu Chengfei as he falls into one desperate situation after another, only to turn danger into safety each time! In the end, he and his neighbor’s younger brother, Wang Hao, become the most famous big shots in Beiyuan! Bad Boys: Young and Reckless 270Reads7.6Score—14d adds
- 27 Bad Boys: The Reckless Years of Yu Chengfei 不良之年少轻狂宇城飞篇 [Underworld] [Hot-Blooded] [First-Person] [Youth] [Reckless Youth] My name is Yu Chengfei. To avenge my father, I ventured into Beiyuan alone. I fought my way forward and made countless brothers who would share life and death with me. In the end, my neighbor's younger brother, Wang Hao, and I rose to the top of Beiyuan's underworld! But I know our story isn't over yet... Our youth was wild and arrogant, and we lived recklessly in our glory days! 34.4kReads9.0Score2.7k14d adds
- 28 Standing Up to Bullies: From Silence to Throwing Punches 对抗霸凌，从沉默到挥拳 Bullying exists everywhere, from schools to workplaces. Thugs are like a gang of robbers, bullying people at will and trampling on their dignity. This book shows how the protagonist, Liu Tian, fights back and turns the tables when he comes up against them. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 29 The Bad Years of Youth 2: Wang Hao Returns to China 不良之年少轻狂2：王浩回国篇 [First-Person] + [Urban Underworld] + [Fan-Fiction Sequel] + [Humorous Style] + [Not Mindless] The two heroes of Beiyuan are both indispensable. During my year and a half in Arabia, I made a name for myself all over again, but a phone call from Sister Nannan left me no choice but to return to that familiar place... One day, Yuan Shao’s Forest Bar was suddenly trashed by a gang of mysterious masked men. And it wasn’t the only place. Yu Chengfei also disappeared while investigating, so I boarded a 4.2kReads—Score18214d adds
- 30 My Years in the Underworld: Three Fingers 混黑道的那些年：三根手指 (Period Setting + Underworld + Urban + Satisfying Read + Passion + Mockumentary Style + Brotherhood + No Harem) This novel may touch on real underworld events. Any similarities are purely coincidental! The audiobook is officially out now! It's a real thrill! Brothers, dive right in! Northeast China, 1994. A young man cuts off three fingers with a knife and flees to the northwest. His parents are divorced and his family is well-off, but he insists on making his way through sheer ruthlessness. Fol 94.8kReads9.2Score10.2k14d adds
- 31 After Getting Out of Prison, the Underworld Princess Pursued Me 出狱后的我被黑道公主倒追 [Passionate youth] [Ruthless and decisive] [Tattoos covering his back] [A crowd of loyal brothers] On the eve of the college entrance exams, Li Shu lands in prison for using excessive force in self-defense. Three years later, having “successfully completed his studies,” he returns like a king. After surviving one bloody battle after another, he finally stands at the top of the city. Only then does he suddenly realize that his seemingly sweet and clueless girlfriend is the biggest boss in the ent 2.8kReads7.0Score21214d adds
- 32 The Rise and Fall of a Nobody 混子风云 [Adult-themed story] [Ensemble cast] [Not mindless] No saintly protagonist, no System Are his parents' divorce the final straw that breaks Li Qian? Absolutely not. His ambition will drive him ever higher. If nobody believes in me, then I'll climb over their heads and become the king of Laicheng. This story does not promote violence in any way. We hope everyone will obey the law. Anyone who breaks the law will be severely punished. Society won't go easy on you. You alone are responsible for every 75Reads—Score—14d adds
- 33 Dongguan: Starting by Conquering a Powerful Woman 东莞：从征服女大佬开始 [Guan City fiction + urban underworld + period drama + passionate + ultimate wish fulfillment] A man must have courage and grit. When his cousin was carried back to Niulan Village, crippled, Chen Xiaolong accompanied his cousin's wife south to Dongguan the next day. Dongguan in 2008 was a chaotic place, crowded with all kinds of people and gangs. To protect his cousin's wife, Chen Xiaolong stepped onto a blood-soaked path through the underworld. The worlds of black, gray, and white were turbulen 30.9kReads7.8Score1.7k14d adds
- 34 The Underworld! 黑道！ [Gangland, realistic, no wish fulfillment, no mindless plot, no System, frequent updates] Five years ago, Lin Jun enlisted in the military. During those five years, he earned countless military honors. Five years later, Lin Jun returns home after leaving the military, only to find not a happy life awaiting him, but his mother's cold corpse. To avenge his mother, Lin Jun has no choice but to embark on a path of no return, stirring up countless waves in the underworld! 34.9kReads8.5Score2.6k14d adds
- 35 Scam Journal 诈骗笔记 Pyramid schemes, lottery-number scams, fake doctors, counterfeit money... Pig-butchering scams, feng shui scams, rigged card games... Human trafficking, dreams sold to aspiring stars, corpse trafficking... After-school tutoring centers, unfinished real estate projects, money laundering through art... A book called A Scammer’s Notes records the scams one fraudster has experienced or planned, as well as the truth about society. I got tangled up with that fraudster many years ago, too, and that bec —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 36 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
- 37 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
- 38 The Northeastern Transfer Student Conquers Tokyo! 东北插班生制霸东京！ [Tokyo + hot-blooded action + System + hard-hitting fights] Li Yuan, a crime boss, died unexpectedly, and his soul transmigrated into the body of a transfer student from Northeast China at Suzuran High School. On his very first day, a delinquent gang cornered him at the entrance. When Li Yuan faced the gang, he awakened the Villain System. As long as he defeated delinquent gangs, he could keep getting stronger. [Defeat the punks who came looking for trouble. Gain +1 physique.] From then on, he t 1.4kReads6.8Score10214d adds
- 39 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
- 40 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
- 41 Big Brother of the Streets: Starting as a Demobilized Soldier 社会大哥：从退伍军人开始 My name is Wang Yi. Wang as in “king,” Yi as in “number one”! My big brother told me there are three essentials to making it in the underworld: being ruthless, knowing when to endure, and having a plan. But he never told me that life in the underworld would mean blood and tears, death and farewells! Countless bones pile up in the wilderness, and the law's net is wide enough to catch every hoodlum. Of the countless gangsters out there, only one or two ever make something of themselves! And I'm on 8.2kReads8.7Score80914d adds
- 42 A Song for the Underworld 混子的挽歌 [Raise our cups and toast the rugged road through the underworld.] [Through blood and fury, a brotherhood that lasts a lifetime.] A naive, timid young man, to keep from losing the brothers at his side again, chooses to take up a three-foot steel blade and step into a world stained red with blood. Behind the brotherly bravado and drunken revelry of the underworld, the only things that never change are ruthless exploitation and cold reality. The people he meets make him sick. And little by little, 2.4kReads7.3Score23914d adds
- 43 Bandit City 匪城 [Not a wish-fulfillment power fantasy, and the protagonist isn't invincible: a comeback story + underworld conflict + a rock-bottom start + personality reversal + ruthless decisiveness + brains and brawn + ruthless bandits and war criminals abound] I'm Shen Liu. Ever since my father was imprisoned for seriously injuring someone when I was seven, I've endured humiliation at every turn. Then a girl appeared, and my life began to change... Once again, they knocked me down. As they unzipped their —Reads—Score2.2k14d adds
- 44 From School Bully to Big Shot, I Fought My Way to the Top 从校霸到大佬，一路杀疯了 The rating is still low, but it will rise as more people rate it. Read without worry: the characters won’t suddenly become stupid. [Underworld fiction + play the pig to eat the tiger + master strategist + resource consolidation] Lin Feng was born the second young master of an underworld family, yet he was determined to conquer the world through his wits. He gathered his brothers, advanced step by step, and struck decisively. Just as everyone thought he was aiming to become the school’s top bully 93Reads7.3Score—14d adds
- 45 My First Half of Life: A Bloody Underworld 我的前半生：血色江湖 [The rating just came in and it’ll keep rising, so don’t let it scare you off! This book is entirely handcrafted, and writing it isn’t easy. Hope you enjoy it!] Eight years in the army, decorated for valor, only to have his future stolen by a substitute! He moves to the city for work and tries to keep his head down, but is forced into a dead end! His brother goes to prison, and his sworn brother dies a tragic death. Good people have no way out, while the wicked run rampant! He abandons the strai 1.4kReads8.4Score13714d adds
- 46 Bloodshed in the Black Abyss 黑渊血戮 (Realistic + Period Setting + Underworld + Political Battles) What is the underworld? It is an endless abyss. Once you take a single step into it, you’ll be trapped forever, with no way out. To make a name for yourself in the underworld, you have to be ready to end up dead in the street or locked away for life at any moment. Now, let me take you back to the late 1980s and show you how the son of a worker gets dragged into this dark abyss and rises step by step to become a crime boss of his era. 898Reads—Score—14d adds
- 47 The Road Through the Martial World Is Long: I Rule the Northeast 江湖路远：我掌东北势 The short drama is now streaming on Hongguo: The Road of the Underworld Is Long, and I Rule the Northeast. Urban, Underworld, Smart Protagonist, Slow-Burn Power Fantasy Snowflakes danced in the air. Outside the prison gates. Twenty-three-year-old Wang Yun stood outside the prison gates, gazing up at the gloomy sky. Five years ago, he killed Zhang San for assaulting his mother. Today was the day he completed his sentence and was released. But when Wang Yun returned home, he discovered that his mo 5.7kReads8.8Score39114d adds
- 48 Winter Reigns Supreme 凛冬为王 In 1998, Frost City was battered by wind and snow. The young Chen Lin had lost his family and been left crippled, suffering one humiliation after another. The moment he entered the underworld, he made ruthlessness his way of life and ruled the streets with his fists. From discarded pawn to overlord, he climbed to the top and became king in the depths of winter. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 49 Those Confused Days of Youth 那些年迷茫的日子 One thought can lead to heaven, another to hell. Half a life wasted, with the past too painful to look back on. I once ruled my corner of the world, and I once ended up in prison. From being adored by everyone to the desolation of today, I dedicate this book to the friends I once had. 686Reads7.1Score—14d adds
- 50 Northeast China Underworld: The Autobiography of a Crime Boss 东北黑道：一位黑道大哥的自传 [Urban] [Underworld] [Outlaws] [A Cast of Villains] [Justice Served] [An Unvarnished Northeastern Chinese Gangster Story] The underworld rises and falls, settling old scores in blood. To others, the jianghu is about loyalty, passion, and settling scores with a thrilling flourish. The jianghu I’ve seen is nothing but deceit and betrayal. There are no bonds of brotherhood, only greed. There is no mercy, only merciless extermination. On this road, a knife is leverage, blood is the price, and a cons 31.3kReads8.8Score1.7k14d adds
