Novels like Dream City’s Underworld: I’m the Most Innocent of Them All
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Dream City’s Underworld: I’m the Most Innocent of Them All, best match first.
- 1 The Rogue's Fireworks 无赖的花火 One old alley, four young men, and a high-stakes gamble that changed their fates. They staked “loyalty” to fight for “money” and “power.” They won the world, but nearly lost one another. When brothers become rivals and bonds are given a price tag, they finally understand: sooner or later, you have to pay for the life you lead. And the debts you owe are no more than one of three things: money, power, or loyalty. 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 2 The Legendary Past of Jianghu Boss Jiadai: The Complete Collection 江湖大哥加代传奇往事全集 He charged into Shenzhen alone, felling bullies with his blade and shaking Dongmen. With brains and courage, he took over Luohu, while brothers stood shoulder to shoulder and pursued their futures. The century's top crime king traded calling cards, and the gangs of Hunan and Guangdong all bowed to him. He built ties with the powerful through worldly wisdom, and his reputation for loyalty and honor spread throughout the underworld. See how Jiadai, with extraordinary intelligence and courage, grew 2.6kReads8.3Score27614d adds
- 3 I Can Turn My Hand to Anything: Two Horizontal Strokes and One Vertical, That's How We Get Things Done 翻手为云：两横一竖就是干 My name is Wang Xiao, and my nickname is Xiao San’er. Those who respect me call me Third Brother. This book is dedicated to the youth I’ve lost and the days I once spent running with a rough crowd. A butterfly spends its life in love with flowers, wandering with their fragrance to the ends of the earth. Through countless hardships, I have no regrets about my golden years. 240Reads—Score—14d adds
- 4 Heading South in 1996: I Take My Young Aunt and Conquer the Underworld 九六南下：我带小姑奶闯江湖 [Period] [Fleeing an arranged marriage] [Heading south for work] [Passionate underworld] [Multiple heroines] New Year’s Day, 1996. Chen Yaozu, a poor lad from southeastern Henan, flees south overnight with his young grandaunt, who is being forced into marriage. As soon as they arrive in the Pearl River Delta, his classmate’s cousin kicks him out of her rental, leaving him homeless. He steps in to help someone, only to be hunted by gangsters. At the factory, he’s bullied, and people even set thei 802Reads—Score10114d adds
- 5 Hong Kong Crossover: Starting in Tsuen Wan, Rebuilding a Money Empire 港综：从荃湾开始，重铸金钱帝国 “Big D, you're a big shot now. Stop going around hacking people up, and try to be a little more level-headed.” White smoke rose from the cigarette between Zhang Zhen's fingers as he spoke with a hint of teasing. “Out here, if you don't hack people up or fight for territory, how are you supposed to make money? Ah Zhen, didn't you say there were three things you needed to make it big: people, money, and the guts to take risks?” Big D said from the sofa, holding a glass of liquor. “Remember this, B 43.3kReads5.6Score2.5k14d adds
- 6 Dark Glory: Twenty Years in the Underworld of Northeast China 黑暗荣耀：东北江湖二十年 1.3kReads8.8Score10614d adds
- 7 1998: My Bloody Era! 1998：我的血色年代！ When I hit the streets, I rely on just three things! Being ruthless, having money, and having tough brothers! These are passionate, fiery times! These are times when tough guys are everywhere! The moment I picked up a three-edged military dagger, I was destined to spend my life battling through the underworld! Don't talk to me about big shots in the underworld. That won't work on me! Welcome to my story of life on the streets! 6.3kReads8.5Score45314d adds
- 8 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
- 9 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
- 10 Godfather of the Underworld: From Prison Dragon to the Pinnacle of Power! 黑道教父：从狱中龙到权势巅峰！ [Urban + Underworld + One Female Lead + Powerful Boss + All-Controlling + Influence] “If kindness is useless, then from now on, I'll cast it aside!” After three years in prison for a crime he was framed for, Zhou Ye is released and sees the light of day once more. Betrayed by his brother and his girlfriend, and devastated by his parents' mysterious deaths, he resolutely sets out on the path of revenge. To avenge his parents and achieve his goals, he vows, “If a god stands in my way, I'll slay 2.9kReads7.7Score23514d adds
- 11 The Alpha Wolf, Who Can Stand Against Me? 头狼，谁与争锋 In the depths of winter, my birth parents abandoned me. Luckily, my adoptive mother took me in and named me Yang Dong. My sister dropped out of school to support my education and went to work in the city. I went to find her with my university acceptance letter, only to witness her being abused to death! Blinded by rage, I took a knife to avenge her, but I was framed and sent to prison instead. Six years behind bars, and my hatred never faded! After getting out, I set off on the road to revenge w 14.5kReads8.9Score1.6k14d adds
- 12 Sons and Daughters of the Jianghu: That Midnight Sun 江湖儿女：那一轮午夜的太阳 The rules of midnight are a way of life much like the law of the jungle. At midnight, what you see may be the moon, but in their eyes, it is their sun. Set against the real-life underworld of the 1990s, this story follows Zhou Shenghua's life in the jianghu. 18Reads—Score—14d adds
- 13 I'm a Goodfella, but a Gangster in the Underworld 白道哥，黑道我 My new work is out! You can read it on Tomato Novel. I hope you enjoy it. Your support is what keeps me writing, and I’ll do my best to tell every story well! 35Reads6.7Score—14d adds
- 14 Rising Through the Underworld with My Mommy 黑道从带妈咪开始 Underworld action with supernatural powers, no saintly protagonist, no System, no invincibility, multiple heroines, and an urban setting! The characters grow and develop over time; they aren't perfect. He starts out as a street punk, and a series of events leads him to fully enter the underworld. He rises to the top step by step! If you like it, please recommend it to your friends! I'd be incredibly grateful! 1Reads8.1Score—14d adds
- 15 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. 22Reads—Score214d adds
- 16 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
- 17 Tales of Liangzhou: Underworld Turmoil 梁州往事之黑道风云 The jianghu has never been just about fighting. It is about navigating human relationships and weighing the pros and cons. After years moving through the gray areas, I have seen the warmth and coldness of human nature, and witnessed betrayal and scheming time and again. With no one to rely on in my youth, I endured a bitter, hard life. Some took a wrong turn and ended up behind bars, their lives ruined before they were halfway through. I clawed my way up from the very bottom of society, swallowi 141Reads6.3Score—14d adds
- 18 Tales of the Northeast: Fortune Is in Heaven's Hands 东北往事之富贵在天 [Underworld] [Not Mindless] [Ensemble Cast] [Realistic] [Passionate] [Not a Feel-Good Power Fantasy] After spending three years in prison for injuring someone while collecting a debt, Chen Yang’s first move after getting out is to track down the lousy bastard who reported him and got him arrested, then demand forty thousand yuan. But that incident sets off a chain of events that once again leaves Chen Yang at a crossroads, just when he had hoped to settle down. So... will he accept the hand fate 125.8kReads9.1Score11.5k14d adds
- 19 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
- 20 Northeast China: The Tragic End of the Underworld 东北往事黑道悲情大结局 This is a fanfiction inspired by the tragic underworld saga Black Morality. It tells of the people who appeared and the events that took place in the four years after Wang Luoguo's death and before Zhao Hongbing's crew burst onto the scene. Readers of Northeast Tales Prequel: Black Morality 1, Northeast Tales Prequel: Black Morality 2, and Northeast Tales: Twenty Years of Underworld Turmoil may have wondered what happened during those four years between Black Morality and Twenty Years of Underwo 4.9kReads6.9Score27014d adds
- 21 Who Rules the Changing Tides of the Martial World? 江湖之谁主浮沉 “Northeastern Gangland,” “No Mindless Shenanigans,” “Based on Real Cases” A group of young people, driven by a moment of recklessness, set out on a path unlike any they had taken before... From Xiao Yao's days of loafing around to gradually growing up and setting off down the point of no return, making a living in the underworld... Family, friendship, and love all become entangled... Some die... some go to prison... and others... A new story, a new beginning. Come witness the rise of a true crim 248Reads—Score—14d adds
- 22 Underworld Tales: One Hand Shrouds the Heavens 黑道往事之只手遮天 [Realistic, not overpowered, no harem, no System, not reborn] A novel about the southern underworld, telling the story of several young men who avenge their brother and gradually rise to become crime bosses. Whether it is the underworld or organized crime, it is all just a game of chess, a set of rules, fraught with danger and human cunning, and driven by power and desire. Behind the bustling city lies a shadowy underworld filled with darkness and desire, where power and money intertwine, and te 413Reads8.6Score—14d adds
- 23 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
- 24 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
- 25 I Started High School as a Good Girl and Became a Crime Boss 上了高中，我从乖乖女变成黑老大 When I started high school, I went from a good girl to a crime boss. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 26 Bloodshed Behind Bars 越狱喋血 A desperate revenge sparked by a dream. To save his younger siblings, protagonist Chen Jianan resolutely breaks out of prison and becomes a shadow of vengeance, mercilessly pursuing those who harmed his family. Meanwhile, police captain Bai Kai leads his team in hot pursuit, balancing law against justice. Family bonds, the law, and justice collide, igniting a thrilling journey of love, hatred, redemption, and sacrifice. This is not merely a life-or-death chase, but also a fierce struggle between 2.1kReads7.3Score16014d adds
- 27 The Bloody Underworld: Thirty Years of Organized Crime in North China 血色江湖：华北黑道三十年 [Underworld + First Person + Period Setting] What is the underworld? It’s a place where even if you win in the end, you still feel like you’ve lost. No matter how much you gain, it can never make up for what you’ve lost. My name is Jiang Qiyao. I witnessed thirty years of the underworld’s rise and fall across North China, watching one boss after another rise to power, then fall. After thirty years in that world, I can’t call myself a good person, but at least I haven’t become completely rotten. 3kReads6.7Score13314d adds
- 28 I’m No Punk: Three of Us Together 我不是小混混之三人行 Determined not to become a thug, he knows that those who walk different paths cannot work together. Brotherhood, and the revival of the Eight Gates of the underworld. Is a sinister force behind it all, or is something far worse on the horizon...? 323Reads—Score1914d adds
- 29 Searching the Underworld for My Missing Son, I Clean Up Crime and Clear My Father's Name 失子入江湖扫黑恶，父冤得伸 (Passionate urban action, a comeback! Multiple female leads!) Also known as "Lost Son Enters the Underworld to Fight Crime, Father’s Wrongful Conviction Finally Overturned" I am the son of a soldier. After getting lost during a sorrowful journey, I was raised to adulthood by a kind rural couple surnamed Ye. I thought it was pure chance that my master taught me peerless martial arts. From then on, I became the greatest martial artist in Nan Yue! Later, to improve my family’s financial situation, 5.8kReads8.8Score38414d adds
- 30 The Underworld: My Dongguan Girlfriend 黑道：我的东莞女友 At the turn of the millennium, I headed south to Dongguan with just 800 yuan in my pocket. Someone stole my wallet on the train, and I staggered into town after going hungry for three meals. I planned to keep my head down and work on an assembly line, but on my very first day, the team leader told me to take off my pants. I beat him up. Then I beat up the fourteen guys who came after me with machetes. Then I took on the whole street. The female owner of a nightclub handed me a gun and a stack of 590Reads6.3Score10914d adds
- 31 The Jianghu: What Is It, Really? 江湖，到底是什么？ [Pure Underworld] [The Jianghu of the 1980s] Where there are people, there are grudges; where there are grudges, there is a jianghu; people are the jianghu! It used to be called the jianghu, but now it's called society! When the storms had passed, Lang Aowen knelt once more before the sacred image of Guan Yu, holding three sticks of incense high above his head. Only one question remained in his heart: The jianghu, what exactly is it? [Serious Warning: The characters and plot in this book are 1.7kReads—Score10114d adds
- 32 Dirty Cop 黑警 “I gave my heart to the moon, but the moon shines on the ditch.” As a people's police officer, it is my duty to defend the country, maintain social order, and protect the lives and property of the people. But there are always people who operate in the gray areas, acting with abandon and flouting the law. I have no choice but to step in and wipe them all out... 4.9kReads7.9Score33214d adds
- 33 The Pinnacle of Black Power 黑权顶点 (Ignore the rating. This is a black-market thriller with guaranteed thrills.) Qin Hui only wants to sell watermelons in peace, earn a little money, and find himself a wife. But the street thugs at the market bully him until he can barely get by. At the end of his rope, he finally picks up a watermelon knife and strikes back. “A man needs either money or power. Better to stand up and fight than live like a spineless loser.” An ordinary man transforms into a big shot, eventually reaching unima 17.1kReads8.5Score1k14d adds
- 34 Underworld Saga: My Big Sister in the Capital 黑道风云：我的京城姐姐 [Not for Young Readers] [Hot-Blooded Underworld] [Brutal Underworld Battles] [The Many Faces of Officialdom] [Face-Slapping Comeback] [Clever, Satisfying Read] He began cultivating at nine and went to prison at thirteen. In jail, Chu He mastered an arsenal of extraordinary skills. With nowhere to turn after his release, he headed for the capital and entered the underworld, winning the support of the capital's most captivating women. With ruthless methods, Chu He outmaneuvered every faction. Sta 3kReads7.9Score33014d adds
- 35 The Legend of Lu Laoqi 陆老七传奇 In the province of Rehe during the Republican era, a catchy rhyme circulated through the martial world: “Lu Laoqi, Li Changjiu, undefeated throughout Rehe; the Beggar, Detective, and Master Shang; Dalong, Qingshan, and Zheng the Crooked; the Driver, Drunkard, and Wang Chaojie; Pockmark, Du Wu, and Liu Minghu; the Twin Fiends, Kou Haiyang, and Yu Xingba.” It vividly described the eighteen peerless fighters of Rehe at the time. Ranked first was Lu Yishan, a boy from a poor family in the province. 27Reads—Score—14d adds
- 36 Tales of the Northeast: The Turbulent Nineties 东北往事之九零风云 (Hot-blooded) (Brotherhood) (Youth) (Fast-paced, no dragging things out) The law-abiding worry all day, while the mighty sing all night. Those who harm others for their own gain ride in comfort, while the honest and fair go hungry. Those who build bridges and mend roads go blind, while those who kill and set fires have plenty of sons. I went to the Western Heaven to ask Buddha. Buddha said, “There's nothing I can do either.” This novel tells the blood-and-tears story of Shen Congwen, a great und 6.8kReads8.9Score44114d adds
- 37 The Pinnacle of Nowhere 1 无人之巅1 I went into the underworld because I didn’t want to be bullied... I stepped into the darkness so I’d never have to turn my back on it again. I cast aside my conscience and sharpened my claws, trampling underfoot each person who had once humiliated me. 240Reads—Score—14d adds
- 38 Destined for a Life in the Underworld from Birth 从出生开始就注定混黑道 No System! No brainless antics! Packed with thrilling, iconic moments from beginning to end! My big brother told me to go to school and protect the campus belle, but I ended up reading her a love letter in front of the whole school? The son of the boss of a rival gang wants to be my underling? A gorgeous, wealthy woman wants me to marry her? It's gotten to the point where I don't even want to run with the gang anymore. I'm surrounded by gorgeous, wealthy women. I really don't want to work hard a 1.2kReads7.2Score—14d adds
- 39 I'll Write My Own Youth 青春我来写 Synopsis: When I was very, very young, I had a beautiful older sister. My parents were always incredibly busy and often had to leave home to work in other places. So one day, they brought home an older sister they had adopted for me. She treated me wonderfully and took care of me in every way. But Dad was exceptionally cruel to her. Then one day in middle school, my sister left. I studied as hard as I could, and by the time I reached high school, I finally got into a school in the city and foun 234Reads—Score—14d adds
- 40 I'm No Little Punk: The Shorties' Hero Squad 我不是小混混之矮子英雄队 I'm determined not to become a hoodlum. Even a short person can stand tall. Not every hero is tall, but every passionate heart deserves to be seen. I won't go along with the ways of the world. I'll walk my own path through the jianghu. The road is long, so may we meet again at the summit... 77Reads—Score—14d adds
- 41 The Golden Age of the Gangland: A Blood-Red Underworld 黑帮盛世：血色江湖 (Not a mindless power fantasy. Underworld, urban setting, no invincible hero, first person, tight logic, humorous writing. Read with caution if that’s not your thing!) A cursed, tragic fate. A life in the underworld that cannot be escaped. A band of brothers who stand together through life and death, and a dark life longing for redemption. You’ve never endured years of hardship, so of course you can’t understand the underworld in my heart. My story begins after I get out of prison in Ice Cit 112.1kReads9.3Score8.3k14d adds
- 42 A Young Man's Years in the Jianghu 少年之江湖岁月 The jianghu is a road with no return, a maze, an abyss. Some manipulate events from the shadows, while others struggle for their lives in the mire. Watch who rises above them all, and who comes crashing down. 19.7kReads9.0Score1.4k14d adds
- 43 Jianghu Dragon: Underworld Storm in the Northeast 江湖枭龙：东北黑道风云 Three years in prison, and everything had changed. After his release, Lu Tao found himself at a crossroads in life. The snowstorm that year was so fierce it bent Lu Tao’s back. The friendship that year was so warm it helped him emerge reborn and fight his way upstream. Watch as a close-knit group of friends stand shoulder to shoulder, stride through a turbulent era, and build something magnificent! 19.1kReads9.1Score1.1k14d adds
- 44 Making a Living on the Side in Australia 我在澳洲捞偏门 This story is based on real events. I came to Australia with a dream of studying abroad, only to be driven to the brink by reality. From a lowly street-level smuggler to a force to be reckoned with, commanding the underworld and crossing the world, I paved my way to power with cunning and bloodshed. Only when I stood at the summit and looked back did I realize that the most dangerous gamble of all is the one you make with human nature. This is a road with no turning back, but who knows which cor 28Reads—Score—14d adds
- 45 Big Brother 大哥 At the end of the last century, before the rules were fully established, all sorts of people emerged in great numbers. They exploited loopholes, ran gray-market businesses, and moved between the worlds of crime and respectability. A young man returned from military service, only to be dragged into the underworld. More than a decade of life on the fringes followed: wine and laughter with friends in spring, late-night talks beneath the lamplight; hardship at first, then glory at last. He had walke 4.1kReads9.0Score29214d adds
- 46 My Years in the Gang 我混社团那些年 The internet’s most authentic account of Hong Kong’s criminal gangs in the 1960s: Kowloon Walled City, the Four Great Detectives, the four major gang families, the Eighteen Tigers of Kowloon, the Twelve Beauties of Mong Kok, and the rise of influential bosses such as Crippled Ho and Fatty Kun, all revealed one by one! This story is adapted from the oral account of a senior member of a Hong Kong and Macau gang. As he is now over eighty, I recorded and adapted his story myself! For special reasons 20.3kReads9.1Score2k14d adds
- 47 A Life of Dark Desires 黑欲人生 Keep your hands ruthless, your mind sharp, and your nerve strong. The martial world is a place where people devour one another. Talk about honor and reason? You'll end up without a bone left! [Blood-Soaked Martial World] [Love and Hate] [Powerful Background] [All the Right Ingredients] 16.3kReads8.9Score1.4k14d adds
- 48 The Underworld’s Final Ballad 黑道绝响 (Original title: Black Road, Final Echo) What is the underworld? Is it really not about fighting and killing, but about the ways of human relationships? Wrong. Only those who can still stand after all the fighting and killing have the right to talk about human relationships. My name is Luo Ping. I witnessed the so-called underworld in a corner of the southwest go from its golden age to its decline, until at last its echoes faded away. This is my story, and a glimpse into one corner of the underw 51.3kReads9.4Score5.6k14d adds
- 49 The Youth of Two Generations 两代人的青春 My name is Li Sunan, and I'm a complete... bastard. Please take a moment, settle in, and let me tell you the whole story. From my godfather, Li Zhen, to my second uncle, Cui Lijun, and then to my own dark life. From 1990 to 2020. Thirty tumultuous years in a small city in Northeast China. One act ends, and another begins. Two generations rise and fall, knowing both glory and disgrace. There are no all-powerful crime bosses here. Just a bunch of little people struggling at the bottom... The road 2.3kReads6.9Score10814d adds
- 50 A New World in Hong Kong Cinema 港综新的世界 A little weed nobody wants? A good-for-nothing nobody cares about? No. I have brothers, more than just one. And I have uncles and aunts who love me. It's just that my life has reached its end... Hong Kong crossovers have no fixed timeline. The characters' appearances and positions vary greatly, so please don't get hung up on the timeline. Thank you! 458Reads—Score514d adds
