The pruning engine detects broken external citations by probing their HTTP status codes using an SSRF-safe streaming request, quickly categorizing non-responsive or 4xx/5xx destinations as dead. It cleans the draft by removing the hyperlink markdown syntax while leaving the underlying anchor text intact as readable prose, preventing broken citations from reaching publishers without carving holes in the narrative flow. Throughout this process, the designated target money link is strictly preserved regardless of status so critical placements are never silently removed, while true dead links are recorded directly on the run item for full visibility.