tick on

verb2

1. •
   (figurative) To elapse;

   • Slowly the moments ticked on; once he murmured the name of the girl he loved. — 1912
2. •
   (figurative) To continue; to keep occurring.

   • The banner flutters and love of the group / stifles the petty unmanly doubt / which ticks on, a liberal superstition. — 2012