"Grandpa, Grandpa. What happened next?"
In the town of Fog Swamp, a group of kids surrounded an old man with a white beard to listen to his stories.
"It's already finished," the old man said with a smile as he patted the children's heads. "Go back home and eat your meal!"
"It's not finished!" one child objected. "Did the fight conclude? Who won?"
"Yes, yes!" other kids chimed in. "Did the girl die? How can there be no ending?"
"We are the ending," the old man said mysteriously. "Go on, off you go! Your parents are here."
Sure enough, the adults came over and rounded up the children, who dispersed in a hubbub.
The ending of the story? What more was there to tell?
The old man muttered to himself.
That year, under the coercion of the Xuanyang Sect, Beiming had no choice but to bring in other forces. Since then, Beiming had been interconnected with the Nine States.
Beiming still exists today—that itself is the ending.
The sound of drums started up, signaling another death.