Getting an Online Degree While Working in China: Any Advice?

Hello, all.

I am currently living and working in China. I have been here for over a year, and I really want to start working on getting my Masters degree and, later, my PhD in English Literature. My understanding is, of course, that I cannot be a student in China and be working in China at the same time, for Visa reasons. Since I really love my job, and I don't want to quit, that means that I will have to work on getting my degrees online through other institutions.

Since my home country is the United States, I was looking at those options first, but it seems like there aren't too many options for online Masters degrees in English Literature that are designed to prepare one for a PhD program. Additionally, as many of us probably know, university degrees in the USA are very expensive, especially for out-of-state students - even online.

Long story short, does anyone here have any experience getting an online degree from an institution outside of China while living in China? Does anyone know of any resources that I might be able to use? Basically any information would be very much appreciated.

Thanks to you all.