The fragmentation of the media environment, coupled with the diversification of international audiences, needs, has opened up new dimensions in the study of translation reception. Meanwhile, the penetration and integration of digital technologies have facilitated substantive and multifaceted negotiations between translated works and their mass readership. Utilizing online review data from English translations of contemporary Chinese novels (2000-2024), this study examines the focal points of mass readers, evaluations. Supplemented by a needs analysis, it explores the mechanisms through which various reader demands influence overall reception outcomes. The findings indicate that a hierarchy of translation reader needs, constructed on the basis of big data, can dynamically adapt to the identification of readers, multidimensional requirements across diverse contexts. Furthermore, a digital intelligence-driven approach to analyzing and optimizing the overseas reception of literary translations not only paves the way for more feasible methodologies in translation reception studies but also provides valuable insights for the strategic allocation of translation resources, which contributes to the leap from “going global” to “going in” for contemporary Chinese literature.