A certain sect sat, and still sits, in a certain mountain.

A rather large mountain, with forests and meadows and all manners of wildlife at the base of the gigantic rock calling it their home. If one went up the slope, they would see life practically gushing from the rock, with grass firmly embedded in the stone. If not grass, then bushes, and if not bushes, then full-grown trees. However, if one reached the top quarter of the mountain, they would experience a rapid shift in temperature. Where were once horned bunnies frolicking in meadows, there were now desolate evergreen trees, with pure white snow piled up at the foot of their trunk. Snow-white foxes with their reminiscent glowing eyes dashed in and out of cover, seeking prey to maim and bring back to their dens. Large yetis prowled through the landscape, searching for meat to consume. At the very top of the mountain, the [Frozen Crystal] sat, placed there by the very first sect leader.

All of this lay on the surface of the Evergreen Mountain, named by the third Evergreen sect leader. Previously, it had been called Frozen Mountain, a name that had absolutely no connection to the bottom three-quarters of the mountain. The third sect leader, in all his infinite glory and wisdom, decided to call it Evergreen: named for the greenery in the bottom parts of the mountain, as well as the evergreen trees firmly planted in the top quarter, as well as the sect living inside the mountain. This sect had flourished for thousands of years, with the title of sect leader being passed down to the most powerful every generation. They were second among all other sects, their glory being outshined only by the Pyrrhic Valley Sect, a sect just as old, if not older, than the Evergreen Sect.

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They had kept their positions as the number two sect for so long by concentrating on their not one, but two bases. One base was pure resilience, making them as tough as the evergreen trees both sect and mountain were named for. The practitioners of this way were known for their extraordinary vitality, with only the top ten sects in the entire continent able to deal significant damage to them. Even with the obvious benefits of being a cultivator of this path, it was considered a commoner path and was the only base that the commoners of the sect were given the manuals for. The reason that such a powerful cultivation method, one that every low-level sect would commit the greatest of crimes for, was regarded as a commoner level cultivation path was that there was a different path for those lucky enough to be talented with [Ice Affinity] from birth. These lucky few were put through a special training program, one designed to bring out the full destructive potential of ice manipulation, and one designed to mold a [Killer of Armies]. This is not a title given lightly. Only those who are literally able to kill an army of hundreds of thousands of normal, low-level cultivators in less than two days on their own are designated as such. As one can imagine, many fail this program. Even the Evergreen Sect, known throughout the continent for its harsh training, cannot turn out more than three [Killers of Armies] every hundred years. In fact, not only can the prestigious Evergreen Sect not turn out more than three [Killers of Armies] every hundred years, it has failed to turn out even one over the last two centuries. The only remaining [Killer of Armies] is powerful enough to stave off any attempts to take from the sect, but in twenty years at most, he will pass away. The Evergreen Sect is growing frantic in their search for new talent; whereas previously they only selected their candidates for the [Ice Affinity] training course from the nobles, they are now extending their reach to the commoners. The wolves are baying at their doorstep, and they know that if they fail to find a genius, they will be ripped apart.