Master Swindler

Description

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Lu Qingjia, once a slag provoked someone who he shouldn’t have. With great difficulty he saved his dog life, on the premise he would never appear before the other.

He entered a horror game and unexpectedly they had a chance encounter.

The man in front, a resentful bloody ghost crawling out of a closet to his back rushing towards him to take his life.

The situation was life threatening. Naturally, he didn’t have time for hypocrisy.

Lu Qingjia stepped forward and pulled out the ghost slowly crawling its way and yelled: “Why the f*ck are you so slow? With your sluggish and foolish manner you won’t even be able to eat sh*t while it’s hot and you still want to eat people”. Then, he hid inside the closet and refused to come out.

Ghost: ……?

The next time they met, the person said towards him: “Either come out or just sleep in the well together with that water ghost in your arms.”

Lu Qingjia; “This isn’t a matter of self esteem, it’s just that we hit it off, I want to chat with him all night and let him feel the long-lost warmth”

Water ghost: ???Don’t touch Laozi!

Associated Names
One entry per line
诈欺大师
Related Series
N/A
Recommendations
A Crowd of Evil Spirit Lines up to Confess to Me (2)
I Rely On Poverty To Sweep Through Survival Games (2)
I Wasn’t Born Lucky (2)
Meeting A Demonic Cultivator, Even God Cries (1)
Recommendation Lists
  1. A comprehensive list of ONGOING BL UF/IF, survival...
  2. Unlimited Flow BL
  3. Survival game BLs
  4. Waiting... (BL) Pt.2
  5. Unlimited Flow/ Horror|Supernatural

Latest Release

Date Group Release
01/04/21 NekoNeko c18 part1
12/15/20 NekoNeko c17
12/06/20 NekoNeko c16
11/23/20 NekoNeko c15
11/15/20 NekoNeko c14
11/08/20 NekoNeko c13
11/01/20 NekoNeko c12
10/25/20 NekoNeko c11
10/18/20 NekoNeko c10
10/11/20 NekoNeko c9
10/04/20 NekoNeko c8
09/30/20 NekoNeko c7
09/27/20 NekoNeko c6
09/22/20 NekoNeko c5
09/20/20 NekoNeko c4
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12 Reviews sorted by


YummyAF
YummyAF rated it
December 9, 2020
Status: --
Dropped the raw novel halfway because it got boring, might return to it in the future. So 3.5/5 for now, will change if I complete it.

Really like the concept, since modern + old Chinese myths is one of my favourite mixture of genres. MC is powerful, so up till the middle part, you don't get the sense that he might die or anything.

Good for folks who like reading about powerful and shameless MCs.

However my main issue with this is the translation. My Chinese isn't that good, but even I noticed... more>> a number of mistakes with the meanings changed + nuances lost, and whole paragraphs missing???? Which puts me off reading the translations. Nuances is fine, but changing the meaning is a bit......

Some examples from the summary and chapter one, mostly the ones with meanings changed, since it's impossible for the nuances to be kept.

Translation:

Spoiler

Water ghost: ???Laozi didn't suffer!

This is totally off. It should be 'Water ghost: ??? Don't touch/get close to Laozi!' Nothing about suffering at all.

[collapse]

Translation:

Spoiler

The pig head usually rushed to the refrigerator, only after emptying it out did he greet Lu Qingjia.

No pig heads mentioned at all, and for some reason the roles were swapped:

The moment this pig arrives, he would rush to the fridge to munch on food, and his only fear would be that the fridge was empty, so there was no need for Lu Qingjia to entertain him at all.

[collapse]

Translation:

Spoiler

Upon hearing this, the old man eyed him. He looked similar to himself now.

Who's the him?

The boss eyed Lu Qingjia upon hearing this, and right now, there wasn't much difference between Lu Qingjia's image during the day and now.

[collapse]

A whole paragraph is missing:

Spoiler

衣着讲究加上外表亮眼,陆清嘉从来没被质疑过消费能力,当然这会儿也一样,虽然刚刚他才说了声自己身上没多少现金。

[collapse]

Another paragraph is missing:

Spoiler

第二天早上胖子醒来,精神肉眼可见的好了很多,来到餐厅碰到正吃早餐的陆清嘉。

[collapse]

Translation:

Spoiler

I couldn't afford something, and they held me back I didn't have the time to come to you

Now this one is quite off, not only did the subject it was referring to change, but even the things that happened. In the translation, the translator made it sound like the sentence was referring to the MC, when it was referring to the old lady instead.

What it should be: She didn't have money to pay for the things she bought and was detained by the shopkeeper, of course she wouldn't have time to go and find you.

[collapse]

These are some of the more major things I noticed for chapter 1. While the grammar is edited (although there's some strange tense issues here and there), missing paragraphs and changed meanings is a no-no for me. This is a unlimited flow and puzzle/thriller novel, and changing the meaning of something could cause the meaning or ending of a certain puzzle or trick to be changed. <<less
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jtrichard
jtrichard rated it
September 20, 2020
Status: Completed
After a while I realized that this story narrative is sort of linked to the author Straight Romance story. It's not that important though, so you don't have to worry about it.

The story follows Lu Qingjia as he takes on a journey to take ... more>>
Spoiler

revenge on his uncle's death.

[collapse]

You'll be slightly confused by the narrative first as it seems like it's start on a whim but as the story goes you'll understand it more.

The background and premise is that
Spoiler

Lu Qingjia has an uncle named Lu Ji. Lu Ji was an intermediate player at a game named Horror Game. One day in his teenage years, his uncle came back from the game with ruptured organs after a betrayal of teammate, and so Lu Qingjia swear that he'll take revenge, with his own hand because he loves when he pushed the people he hates straight to hell and watched their despair.

Anyway, because his uncle again and again refused to let him enter the game, he can't enter it when his uncle died so he has to take another measure. He got closed with someone else on reality (our ML), seduce him and got the secret about the game from him even when the ML ain't telling him a dime, because MC can summarize the people thought based on probabilities and facial expression. He broke off with ML after ML refused to take him to the game, but the ML keep staring at him so MC stayed at his homestay until his friend Pan Zhi got in contact with the test of Horror Game and he won and replace Pan quota.

Then he met ML again because ML has a kind of filter in his brain where he thinks that he can be together again with MC once MC got in the game. They're not though, because MC doesn't want ML to curb his desire for revenge, and ML is scared that MC will die if he insist on taking revenge on the uncle's killer. The reason is, once MC knew the clues to the killer, the killer can also knew that MC want/will kill him, because he's an administrator to the game and so he can pry to the secret of heaven (destinies). Anyway, ML is also an administrator in case you're wondering. He managed to become administrator after MC got the evidences to send ML father to prison and thus cutting off bad karma of ML and making him eligible for the positions.

[collapse]

The MC is really shameless. He's also a master of fraud. He dares to tell people that if he did something wrong but he downright believe he's right then no matter what you say he'll tell you he's right and he'll convinced you that he's right. His charm is that he's always able to talk his way out of troubles.

There are some bads like less descriptions on some things but it doesn't take the enjoyment out of me.

Also a note:
Spoiler

the game is a kind of entity. There's horror game (a black leopard), unlimited flow game, extreme (mtl said so) game, scumbag game system, and other minors one.

[collapse]
the world building is there but you can get confused sometime as it takes for granted that you understand things first. On positive note: no info dump, only undertone explanation in later chapter.

I enjoyed this anyway.

Cheers <<less
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rhianirory
rhianirory rated it
September 5, 2020
Status: c30
this started differently than expected; it took 7 chapters before the MC got around to the actual game. I was just about to drop the story when the subject finally came up and he got his place as a player (it felt like to took forever to get through those first chapters).

the MC seems to be a scam artist, though the raws just call him a 'liar' and 'professional liar.' he's very clever and especially good at charming women in the scenarios. Sadly, the MC is s*upid when it comes... more>> to the ML and spends the first part of the novel hiding and running away from him instead of initiating an actual conversation like a normal adult. His constant fleeing was probably supposed to be funny but it made me dislike both the MC and the ML, who comes across as crazy and a major prick.

I'm sure there's a lot more to the plot than those first impressions but I just couldn't get into the story at the moment. I'm going to let the translator catch up and try again at a later date. I'm temporarily rating it as average, subject to change once I finish the story. <<less
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Jenna rocks
Jenna rocks rated it
August 30, 2020
Status: c18
It's good.

The story focuses on comedy and on horror. The story is hilarious infact. The story is unlike the other horror stories. The MC enters hades through his dreams. The author built the world well.
5 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
Silverxxx
Silverxxx rated it
December 15, 2020
Status: c17
I am an avid fan of horror themed novels that circulate around escape instances trope. So far, I am hooked up with the storylines as well as the personalities of the characters. I am very interested with LQ's character and I think it is very entertaining as well. It's different from the stoic, cold, expressionless MC that I have seen in a few other novels of the same genre, so the change is quite refreshing as well.

... more>>
Spoiler

The fact that this guy is a genius and is able to plan ahead to clear instances while also act as if he is enjoying a holiday baffled me. And also it's different from the usual clearance method where a person needs to wait for hints to be supplied by the game. It's basically a no-brainer task for him, and that made me relax my mind as well from thinking about the complicated process of clearing an instance. The best thing is, death is avoidable for other players as well. I think so but Im not sure since I have only read to chapter 17.

[collapse]

Spoiler

LQ and his ex's relationship seems to be a bit.. Forced for me, where it is actually ZY who forced him. It's just the impression I have from their interactions revealed so far. I know that it is not the case since ZY is another case of a person with abnormal logic and that justifies his actions I guess. The ones where he deems himself to be righteous hahaha. I am still expecting character development from both of them, ZY especially, I preferred it to be realistic. However, since both of the main characters have a relationship with each other and seems to still hold feelings, I am not sure how the plot will progress.

[collapse]

Anyway, this story is quite a nice book and it's actually my cup of tea. Definitely a recommendation to other readers who loves horror genre stories. * Whispers: Although the scare factor is actually non-existent. * <<less
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XxShining_HopexX
XxShining_HopexX rated it
September 19, 2020
Status: Completed
I'm a little bit confused about the ending, but it might just be issues with the MTL.

It's a happy ending! Mostly. 🤔 MC is pretty funny and overall I would recommend the story.
3 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
lislovesnovel
lislovesnovel rated it
September 9, 2020
Status: --
Finally! The MC has some personality not your typical stereotype. Heck even his friend said he is a show off. I liked the relationship between the friends and about the leads, it seems MC is waiting till he is ML's equal before reuniting. The MC is actually intelligent. MC and ML shares some kind of past and that's the reason why the MC hides. Moreover as the summary states, MC agrees to not meet him if he wants to live. I actually quite like this.
3 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
Larsn
Larsn
January 25, 2021
Status: c35
Can I just say... wtf is wrong with this ML?

The story looks pretty good, if you ignore the way it is translated. It's connected to the author's other work but it's not really necessary having read it, it's just mentioned somewhat often. I especially like how the ghosts are depicted in this: they often become "friends" and helpers of the MC and till now I haven't seen a really "bad" ghost. I find it refreshing, although the female ghosts are mostly the ones treated well, hemhem.

The MC is... more>> pretty interesting and really a Master Swindler, as the title says. He can be considered pretty OP but it's really amusing to see all the ways he clears the different instances. The only thing I can lament for now is that (at least till the point I've reached) the skills and things he gets in the previous worlds don't seem to have any impact at all. His character it's pretty crooked but he usually remains inside the moral limits - unless the circumstances require it. Going forward it's explained he was raised in a criminal family as a child criminal before being taken in by his uncle, which explains it, I guess.

The ML, however, I just can't stand. Due to this, I have decided to drop the story now that his 'screen time' has increased. I just... he just comes off as crazy and sick, I don't even know what the orinial idea was... probably to be funny?

The MC and ML are ex-boyfriends, with the MC having approached the other to scam information about the game out of him. The ML found out and broke up with him before confining the MC to not being able to leave his hometown, which, what??

The MC is unable to make any move as otherwise the ML will know and take it as a declaration of undying love and start following him like a psycho stalker. And the MC runs at the first sign of him, which I guess if he really likes the other then it's a bit childish but just... wtf! I'd run away if anything I say will be taken as proof of wathever the other party is thinking of, no matter what. I guess his... devotion and undying love can be considered admirable... to a point, but everything has a line, dude, that's just too much.

Well, I can only hope this relationship will be better fleshed out going forward but I reaaly don't have the patience to read further.

In any case, if you don't mind this part then the story is pretty good and interesting and should be given a try. <<less
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Blackrain76
Blackrain76 rated it
July 15, 2023
Status: Completed
The story contains ghosts, game world but not exactly the there is no gore Or serious horror. The MC is cunning and win all girls ghosts on his side. Actually I also want lu ji (MC's uncle) and lu Qinzhao (villian) to have happy ending. I don't appreciate him but just its from my point of view. Lu ji can control lu Qinzhao atlast and can get HE.
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azure-san
azure-san rated it
April 29, 2022
Status: c64
I really like how the MC's character setting is as a swindler, or con-man. He can scam both ghost and human alike. His confidence amuses me, his wit is always an interesting part to read when he's turning a situation around from the unexpected direction.

But just like how one of the reviewer said earlier, I got stumped once the ML appear. Like, the first few interaction about MC escaping from ML is a comedic relief. But once that one scenario got repeated twice thrice and so on, it became annoying... more>> instead. I couldn't help but be reminded over the annoying part in Scum Villain when Shen Qingqiu escaping from Luo Binghe in misunderstanding fear as well, for so many times, that it made me feel impatient instead.

I have to stop since this Novel is romance, mean I have no choice but to hold on such MC and ML's interaction in the most part of the novel.. <<less
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Panpan66
Panpan66 rated it
March 18, 2021
Status: Completed
This novel was very enjoyable for me. I find the plot new and interesting. I really like that the protagonist was mentally strong from the start and would get even more physically stronger. I also really like how the romance is slowly played out to give me a sense of the ML's personality.

Really wish the author would keep going for another 100 or 200 chapters because there were a lot of interesting things that could be expanded upon.
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Xiu_er
Xiu_er rated it
January 27, 2021
Status: Completed
Rating: 4.5/5

Basically, I really liked this novel for its originality. It's the first horror game novel I have read which is probably why it was so refreshing for me to read. All arcs/individual games were fun and entertaining and the MC always found ways to overcome any obstacles and tasks in his own charmingly witty way.

There are only a few minor things that took away from the whole reading experience. One being the ML. The ML is a stalker with a screwed way of thinking. And while he is definitely... more>> a loyal dog (cat actually) and supports the MC unconditionally, it also makes him a bit weak. And by weak I don't mean his strength as an administrator since he is supposedly the strongest out of all game administrators, but rather that his image is weak. He doesn't play much of a role aside for being a supportive sidekick who tries his best in winning his ex-boyfriend's (the MC's) favor back due to the MC being aloof and independent.

There isn't much romance either. It feels like the MC gets back with the ML because the latter is the next best option rather than actual love. So those who are in it for fluffy romance might be disappointed. I just happen to be unbothered by the lack of romance.

Another thing that could have been changed would be the length of the novel. I was a bit disappointed that it wasn't longer. There was so much potential for more arcs since the author did a few time skips towards the end, mentioning, oh yeah, the MC did join a few more games and got stronger to defeat the villain and then after defeating the villain he joined some more games and ultimately became a boss himself. Like, this could have been fleshed out more... so much wasted potential.

But overall, those little flaws weren't much of a problem in my eyes as I still quite enjoyed reading this novel and think that it was a good introduction into horror game novels for me. <<less
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