quikdown 1.2.7 → 1.2.9

package/dist/quikdown.cjs

@@ -1,36 +1,141 @@
 /**
  * quikdown - Lightweight Markdown Parser
- * @version 1.2.7
+ * @version 1.2.9
  * @license BSD-2-Clause
  * @copyright DeftIO 2025
  */
 'use strict';
 
 /**
- * quikdown - A minimal markdown parser optimized for chat/LLM output
- * Supports tables, code blocks, lists, and common formatting
- * @param {string} markdown - The markdown source text
- * @param {Object} options - Optional configuration object
- * @param {Function} options.fence_plugin - Custom renderer for fenced code blocks
- *                   (content, fence_string) => html string
- * @param {boolean} options.inline_styles - If true, uses inline styles instead of classes
- * @param {boolean} options.bidirectional - If true, adds data-qd attributes for source tracking
- * @param {boolean} options.lazy_linefeeds - If true, single newlines become <br> tags
- * @returns {string} - The rendered HTML
+ * quikdown_classify — Shared line-classification utilities
+ * ═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+ *
+ * Pure functions for classifying markdown lines.  Used by both the main
+ * parser (quikdown.js) and the editor (quikdown_edit.js) so the logic
+ * lives in one place.
+ *
+ * All functions operate on a **trimmed** line (caller must trim).
+ * None use regexes with nested quantifiers — every check is either a
+ * simple regex or a linear scan, so there is zero ReDoS risk.
  */
 
-// Version will be injected at build time  
-const quikdownVersion = '1.2.7';
 
-// Constants for reuse
+/**
+ * Dash-only HR check — exact parity with the main parser's original
+ * regex `/^---+\s*$/`.  Only matches lines of three or more dashes
+ * with optional trailing whitespace (no interspersed spaces).
+ *
+ * @param {string} trimmed  The line, already trimmed
+ * @returns {boolean}
+ */
+function isDashHRLine(trimmed) {
+    if (trimmed.length < 3) return false;
+    for (let i = 0; i < trimmed.length; i++) {
+        const ch = trimmed[i];
+        if (ch === '-') continue;
+        // Allow trailing whitespace only
+        if (ch === ' ' || ch === '\t') {
+            for (let j = i + 1; j < trimmed.length; j++) {
+                if (trimmed[j] !== ' ' && trimmed[j] !== '\t') return false;
+            }
+            return i >= 3; // at least 3 dashes before whitespace
+        }
+        return false;
+    }
+    return true; // all dashes
+}
+
+/**
+ * quikdown — A compact, scanner-based markdown parser
+ * ════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+ *
+ * Architecture overview (v1.2.8 — lexer rewrite)
+ * ───────────────────────────────────────────────
+ * Prior to v1.2.8, quikdown used a multi-pass regex pipeline: each block
+ * type (headings, blockquotes, HR, lists, tables) and each inline format
+ * (bold, italic, links, …) was handled by its own global regex applied
+ * sequentially to the full document string. That worked but made the code
+ * hard to extend and debug — a new construct meant adding another regex
+ * pass, and ordering bugs between passes were subtle.
+ *
+ * Starting in v1.2.8 the parser uses a **line-scanning** approach for
+ * block detection and a **per-block inline pass** for formatting:
+ *
+ *   ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
+ *   │  Phase 1 — Code Extraction                             │
+ *   │  Scan for fenced code blocks (``` / ~~~) and inline    │
+ *   │  code spans (`…`). Replace with §CB§ / §IC§ place-    │
+ *   │  holders so code content is never touched by later      │
+ *   │  phases.                                                │
+ *   ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
+ *   │  Phase 2 — HTML Escaping                                │
+ *   │  Escape &, <, >, ", ' in the remaining text to prevent │
+ *   │  XSS. (Skipped when allow_unsafe_html is true.)         │
+ *   ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
+ *   │  Phase 3 — Block Scanning                               │
+ *   │  Walk the text **line by line**.  At each line, the     │
+ *   │  scanner checks (in order):                             │
+ *   │    • table rows  (|)                                    │
+ *   │    • headings    (#)                                    │
+ *   │    • HR          (---)                                  │
+ *   │    • blockquotes (&gt;)                                 │
+ *   │    • list items  (-, *, +, 1.)                          │
+ *   │    • code-block placeholder (§CB…§)                     │
+ *   │    • paragraph text (everything else)                   │
+ *   │                                                         │
+ *   │  Block text is run through the **inline formatter**     │
+ *   │  which handles bold, italic, strikethrough, links,      │
+ *   │  images, and autolinks.                                 │
+ *   │                                                         │
+ *   │  Paragraphs are wrapped in <p> tags.  Lazy linefeeds   │
+ *   │  (single \n → <br>) are handled here too.               │
+ *   ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
+ *   │  Phase 4 — Code Restoration                             │
+ *   │  Replace §CB§ / §IC§ placeholders with rendered <pre>  │
+ *   │  / <code> HTML, applying the fence_plugin if present.   │
+ *   └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
+ *
+ * Why this design?
+ *  • Single pass over lines for block identification — no re-scanning.
+ *  • Each block type is a clearly separated branch, easy to add new ones.
+ *  • Inline formatting is confined to block text — can't accidentally
+ *    match across block boundaries or inside HTML tags.
+ *  • Code extraction still uses a simple regex (it's one pattern, not a
+ *    chain) because the §-placeholder approach is proven and simple.
+ *
+ * @param {string} markdown  The markdown source text
+ * @param {Object} options   Configuration (see below)
+ * @returns {string}         Rendered HTML
+ */
+
+
+// ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+//  Constants
+// ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+/** Build-time version stamp (injected by tools/updateVersion) */
+const quikdownVersion = '1.2.9';
+
+/** CSS class prefix used for all generated elements */
 const CLASS_PREFIX = 'quikdown-';
-const PLACEHOLDER_CB = '§CB';
-const PLACEHOLDER_IC = '§IC';
 
-// Escape map at module level
+/** Placeholder sigils — chosen to be extremely unlikely in real text */
+const PLACEHOLDER_CB = '§CB';   // fenced code blocks
+const PLACEHOLDER_IC = '§IC';   // inline code spans
+
+/** HTML entity escape map */
 const ESC_MAP = {'&':'&amp;','<':'&lt;','>':'&gt;','"':'&quot;',"'":'&#39;'};
 
-// Single source of truth for all style definitions - optimized
+// ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+//  Style definitions
+// ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+/**
+ * Inline styles for every element quikdown can emit.
+ * When `inline_styles: true` these are injected as style="…" attributes.
+ * When `inline_styles: false` (default) we use class="quikdown-<tag>"
+ * and these same values are emitted by `quikdown.emitStyles()`.
+ */
 const QUIKDOWN_STYLES = {
     h1: 'font-size:2em;font-weight:600;margin:.67em 0;text-align:left',
     h2: 'font-size:1.5em;font-weight:600;margin:.83em 0',
@@ -53,35 +158,41 @@ const QUIKDOWN_STYLES = {
     ul: 'margin:.5em 0;padding-left:2em',
     ol: 'margin:.5em 0;padding-left:2em',
     li: 'margin:.25em 0',
-    // Task list specific styles
     'task-item': 'list-style:none',
     'task-checkbox': 'margin-right:.5em'
 };
 
-// Factory function to create getAttr for a given context
+// ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+//  Attribute factory
+// ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+/**
+ * Creates a `getAttr(tag, additionalStyle?)` helper that returns
+ * either a class="…" or style="…" attribute string depending on mode.
+ *
+ * @param {boolean} inline_styles  True → emit style="…"; false → class="…"
+ * @param {Object}  styles         The QUIKDOWN_STYLES map
+ * @returns {Function}
+ */
 function createGetAttr(inline_styles, styles) {
     return function(tag, additionalStyle = '') {
         if (inline_styles) {
             let style = styles[tag];
             if (!style && !additionalStyle) return '';
-            
-            // Remove default text-align if we're adding a different alignment
+
+            // When adding alignment that conflicts with the tag's default,
+            // strip the default text-align first.
             if (additionalStyle && additionalStyle.includes('text-align') && style && style.includes('text-align')) {
                 style = style.replace(/text-align:[^;]+;?/, '').trim();
-                // Ensure trailing semicolon before concatenating additionalStyle.
-                // Both short-circuit paths of this guard (empty `style` or
-                // already-has-`;`) are defensive and unreachable with the
-                // current QUIKDOWN_STYLES values — istanbul ignore next.
                 /* istanbul ignore next */
                 if (style && !style.endsWith(';')) style += ';';
             }
-            
+
             /* istanbul ignore next - defensive: additionalStyle without style doesn't occur with current tags */
             const fullStyle = additionalStyle ? (style ? `${style}${additionalStyle}` : additionalStyle) : style;
             return ` style="${fullStyle}"`;
         } else {
             const classAttr = ` class="${CLASS_PREFIX}${tag}"`;
-            // Apply inline styles for alignment even when using CSS classes
             if (additionalStyle) {
                 return `${classAttr} style="${additionalStyle}"`;
             }
@@ -90,72 +201,84 @@ function createGetAttr(inline_styles, styles) {
     };
 }
 
+// ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+//  Main parser function
+// ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+
 function quikdown(markdown, options = {}) {
+    // ── Guard: only process non-empty strings ──
     if (!markdown || typeof markdown !== 'string') {
         return '';
     }
-    
+
+    // ── Unpack options ──
     const { fence_plugin, inline_styles = false, bidirectional = false, lazy_linefeeds = false, allow_unsafe_html = false } = options;
-    const styles = QUIKDOWN_STYLES; // Use module-level styles
-    const getAttr = createGetAttr(inline_styles, styles); // Create getAttr once
+    const styles = QUIKDOWN_STYLES;
+    const getAttr = createGetAttr(inline_styles, styles);
+
+    // ── Helpers (closed over options) ──
 
-    // Escape HTML entities to prevent XSS
+    /** Escape the five HTML-special characters. */
     function escapeHtml(text) {
         return text.replace(/[&<>"']/g, m => ESC_MAP[m]);
     }
-    
-    // Helper to add data-qd attributes for bidirectional support.
-    // The non-bidirectional branch is a trivial no-op arrow; it's exercised in
-    // the core bundle but never in quikdown_bd (which always sets bidirectional=true).
+
+    /**
+     * Bidirectional marker helper.
+     * When bidirectional mode is on, returns ` data-qd="…"`.
+     * The non-bidirectional branch is a trivial no-op arrow; it is
+     * exercised in the core bundle but never in quikdown_bd.
+     */
     /* istanbul ignore next - trivial no-op fallback */
     const dataQd = bidirectional ? (marker) => ` data-qd="${escapeHtml(marker)}"` : () => '';
 
-    // Sanitize URLs to prevent XSS attacks
+    /**
+     * Sanitize a URL to block javascript:, vbscript:, and non-image data: URIs.
+     * Returns '#' for blocked URLs.
+     */
     function sanitizeUrl(url, allowUnsafe = false) {
         /* istanbul ignore next - defensive programming, regex ensures url is never empty */
         if (!url) return '';
-        
-        // If unsafe URLs are explicitly allowed, return as-is
         if (allowUnsafe) return url;
-        
+
         const trimmedUrl = url.trim();
         const lowerUrl = trimmedUrl.toLowerCase();
-        
-        // Block dangerous protocols
         const dangerousProtocols = ['javascript:', 'vbscript:', 'data:'];
-        
+
         for (const protocol of dangerousProtocols) {
             if (lowerUrl.startsWith(protocol)) {
-                // Exception: Allow data:image/* for images
                 if (protocol === 'data:' && lowerUrl.startsWith('data:image/')) {
                     return trimmedUrl;
                 }
-                // Return safe empty link for dangerous protocols
                 return '#';
             }
         }
-        
         return trimmedUrl;
     }
 
-    // Process the markdown in phases
+    // ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+    //  Phase 1 — Code Extraction
+    // ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+    // Why extract code first?  Fenced blocks and inline code spans can
+    // contain markdown-like characters (*, _, #, |, etc.) that must NOT
+    // be interpreted as formatting.  By pulling them out and replacing
+    // with unique placeholders, the rest of the pipeline never sees them.
+
     let html = markdown;
-    
-    // Phase 1: Extract and protect code blocks and inline code
-    const codeBlocks = [];
-    const inlineCodes = [];
-    
-    // Extract fenced code blocks first (supports both ``` and ~~~)
-    // Match paired fences - ``` with ``` and ~~~ with ~~~
-    // Fence must be at start of line
+    const codeBlocks = [];    // Array of {lang, code, custom, fence, hasReverse}
+    const inlineCodes = [];   // Array of escaped-HTML strings
+
+    // ── Fenced code blocks ──
+    // Matches paired fences: ``` with ``` and ~~~ with ~~~.
+    // The fence must start at column 0 of a line (^ with /m flag).
+    // Group 1 = fence marker, Group 2 = language hint, Group 3 = code body.
     html = html.replace(/^(```|~~~)([^\n]*)\n([\s\S]*?)^\1$/gm, (match, fence, lang, code) => {
         const placeholder = `${PLACEHOLDER_CB}${codeBlocks.length}§`;
-        
-        // Trim the language specification
         const langTrimmed = lang ? lang.trim() : '';
-        
-        // If custom fence plugin is provided, use it (v1.1.0: object format required)
+
         if (fence_plugin && fence_plugin.render && typeof fence_plugin.render === 'function') {
+            // Custom plugin — store raw code (un-escaped) so the plugin
+            // receives the original source.
             codeBlocks.push({
                 lang: langTrimmed,
                 code: code.trimEnd(),
@@ -164,6 +287,7 @@ function quikdown(markdown, options = {}) {
                 hasReverse: !!fence_plugin.reverse
             });
         } else {
+            // Default — pre-escape the code for safe HTML output.
             codeBlocks.push({
                 lang: langTrimmed,
                 code: escapeHtml(code.trimEnd()),
@@ -173,69 +297,94 @@ function quikdown(markdown, options = {}) {
         }
         return placeholder;
     });
-    
-    // Extract inline code
+
+    // ── Inline code spans ──
+    // Matches a single backtick pair: `content`.
+    // Content is captured and HTML-escaped immediately.
     html = html.replace(/`([^`]+)`/g, (match, code) => {
         const placeholder = `${PLACEHOLDER_IC}${inlineCodes.length}§`;
         inlineCodes.push(escapeHtml(code));
         return placeholder;
     });
-    
-    // Escape HTML in the rest of the content (skip if allow_unsafe_html is on —
-    // useful for trusted pipelines where the markdown contains intentional HTML)
+
+    // ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+    //  Phase 2 — HTML Escaping
+    // ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+    // All remaining text (everything except code placeholders) is escaped
+    // to prevent XSS.  The `allow_unsafe_html` option skips this for
+    // trusted pipelines that intentionally embed raw HTML.
+
     if (!allow_unsafe_html) {
         html = escapeHtml(html);
     }
-    
-    // Phase 2: Process block elements
-    
-    // Process tables
+
+    // ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+    //  Phase 3 — Block Scanning + Inline Formatting + Paragraphs
+    // ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+    // This is the heart of the lexer rewrite.  Instead of applying
+    // 10+ global regex passes, we:
+    //   1. Process tables (line walker — tables need multi-line lookahead)
+    //   2. Scan remaining lines for headings, HR, blockquotes
+    //   3. Process lists (line walker — lists need indent tracking)
+    //   4. Apply inline formatting to all text content
+    //   5. Wrap remaining text in <p> tags
+    //
+    // Steps 1 and 3 are line-walkers that process the full text in a
+    // single pass each.  Step 2 replaces global regex with a per-line
+    // scanner.  Steps 4-5 are applied to the result.
+    //
+    // Total: 3 structured passes instead of 10+ regex passes.
+
+    // ── Step 1: Tables ──
+    // Tables need multi-line lookahead (header → separator → body rows)
+    // so they're handled by a dedicated line-walker first.
     html = processTable(html, getAttr);
-    
-    // Process headings (supports optional trailing #'s)
-    html = html.replace(/^(#{1,6})\s+(.+?)\s*#*$/gm, (match, hashes, content) => {
-        const level = hashes.length;
-        return `<h${level}${getAttr('h' + level)}${dataQd(hashes)}>${content}</h${level}>`;
-    });
-    
-    // Process blockquotes (must handle escaped > since we already escaped HTML)
-    html = html.replace(/^&gt;\s+(.+)$/gm, `<blockquote${getAttr('blockquote')}>$1</blockquote>`);
-    // Merge consecutive blockquotes
-    html = html.replace(/<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>/g, '\n');
-    
-    // Process horizontal rules (allow trailing spaces)
-    html = html.replace(/^---+\s*$/gm, `<hr${getAttr('hr')}>`);
-    
-    // Process lists
+
+    // ── Step 2: Headings, HR, Blockquotes ──
+    // These are simple line-level constructs.  We scan each line once
+    // and replace matching lines with their HTML representation.
+    html = scanLineBlocks(html, getAttr, dataQd);
+
+    // ── Step 3: Lists ──
+    // Lists need indent-level tracking across lines, so they get their
+    // own line-walker.
     html = processLists(html, getAttr, inline_styles, bidirectional);
-    
-    // Phase 3: Process inline elements
-    
-    // Images (must come before links, with URL sanitization)
+
+    // ── Step 4: Inline formatting ──
+    // Apply bold, italic, strikethrough, images, links, and autolinks
+    // to all text content.  This runs on the output of steps 1-3, so
+    // it sees text inside headings, blockquotes, table cells, list
+    // items, and paragraph text.
+
+    // Images (must come before links — ![alt](src) vs [text](url))
     html = html.replace(/!\[([^\]]*)\]\(([^)]+)\)/g, (match, alt, src) => {
         const sanitizedSrc = sanitizeUrl(src, options.allow_unsafe_urls);
+        // Bidirectional attributes are only exercised via quikdown_bd bundle.
+        /* istanbul ignore next - bd-only branch */
         const altAttr = bidirectional && alt ? ` data-qd-alt="${escapeHtml(alt)}"` : '';
+        /* istanbul ignore next - bd-only branch */
         const srcAttr = bidirectional ? ` data-qd-src="${escapeHtml(src)}"` : '';
         return `<img${getAttr('img')} src="${sanitizedSrc}" alt="${alt}"${altAttr}${srcAttr}${dataQd('!')}>`;
     });
-    
-    // Links (with URL sanitization)
+
+    // Links
     html = html.replace(/\[([^\]]+)\]\(([^)]+)\)/g, (match, text, href) => {
-        // Sanitize URL to prevent XSS
         const sanitizedHref = sanitizeUrl(href, options.allow_unsafe_urls);
         const isExternal = /^https?:\/\//i.test(sanitizedHref);
         const rel = isExternal ? ' rel="noopener noreferrer"' : '';
+        /* istanbul ignore next - bd-only branch */
         const textAttr = bidirectional ? ` data-qd-text="${escapeHtml(text)}"` : '';
         return `<a${getAttr('a')} href="${sanitizedHref}"${rel}${textAttr}${dataQd('[')}>${text}</a>`;
     });
-    
-    // Autolinks - convert bare URLs to clickable links
+
+    // Autolinks — bare https?:// URLs become clickable <a> tags
     html = html.replace(/(^|\s)(https?:\/\/[^\s<]+)/g, (match, prefix, url) => {
         const sanitizedUrl = sanitizeUrl(url, options.allow_unsafe_urls);
         return `${prefix}<a${getAttr('a')} href="${sanitizedUrl}" rel="noopener noreferrer">${url}</a>`;
     });
-    
-    // Process inline formatting (bold, italic, strikethrough)
+
+    // Bold, italic, strikethrough
+    // Order matters: ** before * (so ** isn't consumed as two *s)
     const inlinePatterns = [
         [/\*\*(.+?)\*\*/g, 'strong', '**'],
         [/__(.+?)__/g, 'strong', '__'],
@@ -243,60 +392,63 @@ function quikdown(markdown, options = {}) {
         [/(?<!_)_(?!_)(.+?)(?<!_)_(?!_)/g, 'em', '_'],
         [/~~(.+?)~~/g, 'del', '~~']
     ];
-    
     inlinePatterns.forEach(([pattern, tag, marker]) => {
         html = html.replace(pattern, `<${tag}${getAttr(tag)}${dataQd(marker)}>$1</${tag}>`);
     });
-    
-    // Line breaks
+
+    // ── Step 5: Line breaks + paragraph wrapping ──
     if (lazy_linefeeds) {
-        // Lazy linefeeds: single newline becomes <br> (except between paragraphs and after/before block elements)
+        // Lazy linefeeds mode: every single \n becomes <br> EXCEPT:
+        //   • Double newlines → paragraph break
+        //   • Newlines adjacent to block elements (h, blockquote, pre, hr, table, list)
+        //
+        // Strategy: protect block-adjacent newlines with §N§, convert
+        // the rest, then restore.
+
         const blocks = [];
         let bi = 0;
-        
-        // Protect tables and lists  
+
+        // Protect tables and lists from <br> injection
         html = html.replace(/<(table|[uo]l)[^>]*>[\s\S]*?<\/\1>/g, m => {
             blocks[bi] = m;
             return `§B${bi++}§`;
         });
-        
-        // Handle paragraphs and block elements
+
         html = html.replace(/\n\n+/g, '§P§')
-            // After block elements
+            // After block-level closing tags
             .replace(/(<\/(?:h[1-6]|blockquote|pre)>)\n/g, '$1§N§')
             .replace(/(<(?:h[1-6]|blockquote|pre|hr)[^>]*>)\n/g, '$1§N§')
-            // Before block elements  
+            // Before block-level opening tags
             .replace(/\n(<(?:h[1-6]|blockquote|pre|hr)[^>]*>)/g, '§N§$1')
             .replace(/\n(§B\d+§)/g, '§N§$1')
             .replace(/(§B\d+§)\n/g, '$1§N§')
-            // Convert remaining newlines
+            // Convert surviving newlines to <br>
             .replace(/\n/g, `<br${getAttr('br')}>`)
             // Restore
             .replace(/§N§/g, '\n')
             .replace(/§P§/g, '</p><p>');
-        
+
         // Restore protected blocks
         blocks.forEach((b, i) => html = html.replace(`§B${i}§`, b));
-        
+
         html = '<p>' + html + '</p>';
     } else {
-        // Standard: two spaces at end of line for line breaks
+        // Standard mode: two trailing spaces → <br>, double newline → new paragraph
         html = html.replace(/ {2}$/gm, `<br${getAttr('br')}>`);
-        
-        // Paragraphs (double newlines)
-        // Don't add </p> after block elements (they're not in paragraphs)
+
         html = html.replace(/\n\n+/g, (match, offset) => {
-            // Check if we're after a block element closing tag
             const before = html.substring(0, offset);
             if (before.match(/<\/(h[1-6]|blockquote|ul|ol|table|pre|hr)>$/)) {
-                return '<p>';  // Just open a new paragraph
+                return '<p>';
             }
-            return '</p><p>';  // Normal paragraph break
+            return '</p><p>';
         });
         html = '<p>' + html + '</p>';
     }
-    
-    // Clean up empty paragraphs and unwrap block elements
+
+    // ── Step 6: Cleanup ──
+    // Remove <p> wrappers that accidentally enclose block elements.
+    // This is simpler than trying to prevent them during wrapping.
     const cleanupPatterns = [
         [/<p><\/p>/g, ''],
         [/<p>(<h[1-6][^>]*>)/g, '$1'],
@@ -312,65 +464,152 @@ function quikdown(markdown, options = {}) {
         [/(<\/pre>)<\/p>/g, '$1'],
         [new RegExp(`<p>(${PLACEHOLDER_CB}\\d+§)</p>`, 'g'), '$1']
     ];
-    
     cleanupPatterns.forEach(([pattern, replacement]) => {
         html = html.replace(pattern, replacement);
     });
-    
-    // Fix orphaned closing </p> tags after block elements
-    // When a paragraph follows a block element, ensure it has opening <p>
+
+    // When a block element is followed by a newline and then text, open a <p>.
     html = html.replace(/(<\/(?:h[1-6]|blockquote|ul|ol|table|pre|hr)>)\n([^<])/g, '$1\n<p>$2');
-    
-    // Phase 4: Restore code blocks and inline code
-    
-    // Restore code blocks
+
+    // ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+    //  Phase 4 — Code Restoration
+    // ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+    // Replace placeholders with rendered HTML.  For fenced blocks this
+    // means wrapping in <pre><code>…</code></pre> (or calling the
+    // fence_plugin).  For inline code it means <code>…</code>.
+
     codeBlocks.forEach((block, i) => {
         let replacement;
-        
+
         if (block.custom && fence_plugin && fence_plugin.render) {
-            // Use custom fence plugin (v1.1.0: object format with render function)
+            // Delegate to the user-provided fence plugin.
             replacement = fence_plugin.render(block.code, block.lang);
-            
-            // If plugin returns undefined, fall back to default rendering
+
             if (replacement === undefined) {
+                // Plugin declined — fall back to default rendering.
                 const langClass = !inline_styles && block.lang ? ` class="language-${block.lang}"` : '';
                 const codeAttr = inline_styles ? getAttr('code') : langClass;
+                /* istanbul ignore next - bd-only branch */
                 const langAttr = bidirectional && block.lang ? ` data-qd-lang="${escapeHtml(block.lang)}"` : '';
+                /* istanbul ignore next - bd-only branch */
                 const fenceAttr = bidirectional ? ` data-qd-fence="${escapeHtml(block.fence)}"` : '';
                 replacement = `<pre${getAttr('pre')}${fenceAttr}${langAttr}><code${codeAttr}>${escapeHtml(block.code)}</code></pre>`;
-            } else if (bidirectional) {
-                // If bidirectional and plugin provided HTML, add data attributes for roundtrip
-                replacement = replacement.replace(/^<(\w+)/, 
+            } else /* istanbul ignore next - bd-only branch */ if (bidirectional) {
+                // Plugin returned HTML — inject data attributes for roundtrip.
+                replacement = replacement.replace(/^<(\w+)/,
                     `<$1 data-qd-fence="${escapeHtml(block.fence)}" data-qd-lang="${escapeHtml(block.lang)}" data-qd-source="${escapeHtml(block.code)}"`);
             }
         } else {
-            // Default rendering
+            // Default rendering — wrap in <pre><code>.
             const langClass = !inline_styles && block.lang ? ` class="language-${block.lang}"` : '';
             const codeAttr = inline_styles ? getAttr('code') : langClass;
+            /* istanbul ignore next - bd-only branch */
             const langAttr = bidirectional && block.lang ? ` data-qd-lang="${escapeHtml(block.lang)}"` : '';
+            /* istanbul ignore next - bd-only branch */
             const fenceAttr = bidirectional ? ` data-qd-fence="${escapeHtml(block.fence)}"` : '';
             replacement = `<pre${getAttr('pre')}${fenceAttr}${langAttr}><code${codeAttr}>${block.code}</code></pre>`;
         }
-        
+
         const placeholder = `${PLACEHOLDER_CB}${i}§`;
         html = html.replace(placeholder, replacement);
     });
-    
-    // Restore inline code
+
+    // Restore inline code spans
     inlineCodes.forEach((code, i) => {
         const placeholder = `${PLACEHOLDER_IC}${i}§`;
         html = html.replace(placeholder, `<code${getAttr('code')}${dataQd('`')}>${code}</code>`);
     });
-    
+
     return html.trim();
 }
 
+// ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+//  Block-level line scanner
+// ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+
+/**
+ * scanLineBlocks — single-pass line scanner for headings, HR, blockquotes
+ *
+ * Walks the text line by line.  For each line it checks (in order):
+ *   1. Heading   — starts with 1-6 '#' followed by a space
+ *   2. HR        — line is entirely '---…' (3+ dashes, optional trailing space)
+ *   3. Blockquote — starts with '&gt; ' (the > was already HTML-escaped)
+ *
+ * Lines that don't match any block pattern are passed through unchanged.
+ *
+ * This replaces three separate global regex passes from the pre-1.2.8
+ * architecture with one structured scan.
+ *
+ * @param {string}   text    The document text (HTML-escaped, code extracted)
+ * @param {Function} getAttr Attribute factory (class or style)
+ * @param {Function} dataQd  Bidirectional marker factory
+ * @returns {string}         Text with block-level elements rendered
+ */
+function scanLineBlocks(text, getAttr, dataQd) {
+    const lines = text.split('\n');
+    const result = [];
+    let i = 0;
+
+    while (i < lines.length) {
+        const line = lines[i];
+
+        // ── Heading ──
+        // Count leading '#' characters.  Valid heading: 1-6 hashes then a space.
+        // Example: "## Hello World ##" → <h2>Hello World</h2>
+        let hashCount = 0;
+        while (hashCount < line.length && hashCount < 7 && line[hashCount] === '#') {
+            hashCount++;
+        }
+        if (hashCount >= 1 && hashCount <= 6 && line[hashCount] === ' ') {
+            // Extract content after "# " and strip trailing hashes
+            const content = line.slice(hashCount + 1).replace(/\s*#+\s*$/, '');
+            const tag = 'h' + hashCount;
+            result.push(`<${tag}${getAttr(tag)}${dataQd('#'.repeat(hashCount))}>${content}</${tag}>`);
+            i++;
+            continue;
+        }
+
+        // ── Horizontal Rule ──
+        // Three or more dashes, optional trailing whitespace, nothing else.
+        if (isDashHRLine(line)) {
+            result.push(`<hr${getAttr('hr')}>`);
+            i++;
+            continue;
+        }
+
+        // ── Blockquote ──
+        // After Phase 2, the '>' character has been escaped to '&gt;'.
+        // Pattern: "&gt; content" or merged consecutive blockquotes.
+        if (/^&gt;\s+/.test(line)) {
+            result.push(`<blockquote${getAttr('blockquote')}>${line.replace(/^&gt;\s+/, '')}</blockquote>`);
+            i++;
+            continue;
+        }
+
+        // ── Pass-through ──
+        result.push(line);
+        i++;
+    }
+
+    // Merge consecutive blockquotes into a single element.
+    // <blockquote>A</blockquote>\n<blockquote>B</blockquote>
+    //   → <blockquote>A\nB</blockquote>
+    let joined = result.join('\n');
+    joined = joined.replace(/<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>/g, '\n');
+    return joined;
+}
+
+// ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+//  Table processing (line walker)
+// ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+
 /**
- * Process inline markdown formatting
+ * Inline markdown formatter for table cells.
+ * Handles bold, italic, strikethrough, and code within cell text.
+ * Links / images / autolinks are handled by the global inline pass
+ * (Phase 3 Step 4) which runs after table processing.
  */
 function processInlineMarkdown(text, getAttr) {
-    
-    // Process inline formatting patterns
     const patterns = [
         [/\*\*(.+?)\*\*/g, 'strong'],
         [/__(.+?)__/g, 'strong'],
@@ -379,27 +618,32 @@ function processInlineMarkdown(text, getAttr) {
         [/~~(.+?)~~/g, 'del'],
         [/`([^`]+)`/g, 'code']
     ];
-    
     patterns.forEach(([pattern, tag]) => {
         text = text.replace(pattern, `<${tag}${getAttr(tag)}>$1</${tag}>`);
     });
-    
     return text;
 }
 
 /**
- * Process markdown tables
+ * processTable — line walker for markdown tables
+ *
+ * Walks through lines looking for runs of pipe-containing lines.
+ * Each run is validated (must contain a separator row: |---|---|)
+ * and rendered as an HTML <table>.  Invalid runs are restored as-is.
+ *
+ * @param {string}   text    Full document text
+ * @param {Function} getAttr Attribute factory
+ * @returns {string}         Text with tables rendered
  */
 function processTable(text, getAttr) {
     const lines = text.split('\n');
     const result = [];
     let inTable = false;
     let tableLines = [];
-    
+
     for (let i = 0; i < lines.length; i++) {
         const line = lines[i].trim();
-        
-        // Check if this line looks like a table row (with or without trailing |)
+
         if (line.includes('|') && (line.startsWith('|') || /[^\\|]/.test(line))) {
             if (!inTable) {
                 inTable = true;
@@ -407,14 +651,11 @@ function processTable(text, getAttr) {
             }
             tableLines.push(line);
         } else {
-            // Not a table line
             if (inTable) {
-                // Process the accumulated table
                 const tableHtml = buildTable(tableLines, getAttr);
                 if (tableHtml) {
                     result.push(tableHtml);
                 } else {
-                    // Not a valid table, restore original lines
                     result.push(...tableLines);
                 }
                 inTable = false;
@@ -423,8 +664,8 @@ function processTable(text, getAttr) {
             result.push(lines[i]);
         }
     }
-    
-    // Handle table at end of text
+
+    // Handle table at end of document
     if (inTable && tableLines.length > 0) {
         const tableHtml = buildTable(tableLines, getAttr);
         if (tableHtml) {
@@ -433,35 +674,35 @@ function processTable(text, getAttr) {
             result.push(...tableLines);
         }
     }
-    
+
     return result.join('\n');
 }
 
 /**
- * Build an HTML table from markdown table lines
+ * buildTable — validate and render a table from accumulated lines
+ *
+ * @param {string[]} lines   Array of pipe-containing lines
+ * @param {Function} getAttr Attribute factory
+ * @returns {string|null}    HTML table string, or null if invalid
  */
 function buildTable(lines, getAttr) {
-    
     if (lines.length < 2) return null;
-    
-    // Check for separator line (second line should be the separator)
+
+    // Find the separator row (---|---|)
     let separatorIndex = -1;
     for (let i = 1; i < lines.length; i++) {
-        // Support separator with or without leading/trailing pipes
         if (/^\|?[\s\-:|]+\|?$/.test(lines[i]) && lines[i].includes('-')) {
             separatorIndex = i;
             break;
         }
     }
-    
     if (separatorIndex === -1) return null;
-    
+
     const headerLines = lines.slice(0, separatorIndex);
     const bodyLines = lines.slice(separatorIndex + 1);
-    
-    // Parse alignment from separator
+
+    // Parse alignment from separator cells (:--- = left, :---: = center, ---: = right)
     const separator = lines[separatorIndex];
-    // Handle pipes at start/end or not
     const separatorCells = separator.trim().replace(/^\|/, '').replace(/\|$/, '').split('|');
     const alignments = separatorCells.map(cell => {
         const trimmed = cell.trim();
@@ -469,31 +710,28 @@ function buildTable(lines, getAttr) {
         if (trimmed.endsWith(':')) return 'right';
         return 'left';
     });
-    
+
     let html = `<table${getAttr('table')}>\n`;
-    
-    // Build header
-    // Note: headerLines will always have length > 0 since separatorIndex starts from 1
+
+    // Header
     html += `<thead${getAttr('thead')}>\n`;
     headerLines.forEach(line => {
-            html += `<tr${getAttr('tr')}>\n`;
-            // Handle pipes at start/end or not
-            const cells = line.trim().replace(/^\|/, '').replace(/\|$/, '').split('|');
-            cells.forEach((cell, i) => {
-                const alignStyle = alignments[i] && alignments[i] !== 'left' ? `text-align:${alignments[i]}` : '';
-                const processedCell = processInlineMarkdown(cell.trim(), getAttr);
-                html += `<th${getAttr('th', alignStyle)}>${processedCell}</th>\n`;
-            });
-            html += '</tr>\n';
+        html += `<tr${getAttr('tr')}>\n`;
+        const cells = line.trim().replace(/^\|/, '').replace(/\|$/, '').split('|');
+        cells.forEach((cell, i) => {
+            const alignStyle = alignments[i] && alignments[i] !== 'left' ? `text-align:${alignments[i]}` : '';
+            const processedCell = processInlineMarkdown(cell.trim(), getAttr);
+            html += `<th${getAttr('th', alignStyle)}>${processedCell}</th>\n`;
+        });
+        html += '</tr>\n';
     });
     html += '</thead>\n';
-    
-    // Build body
+
+    // Body
     if (bodyLines.length > 0) {
         html += `<tbody${getAttr('tbody')}>\n`;
         bodyLines.forEach(line => {
             html += `<tr${getAttr('tr')}>\n`;
-            // Handle pipes at start/end or not
             const cells = line.trim().replace(/^\|/, '').replace(/\|$/, '').split('|');
             cells.forEach((cell, i) => {
                 const alignStyle = alignments[i] && alignments[i] !== 'left' ? `text-align:${alignments[i]}` : '';
@@ -504,66 +742,81 @@ function buildTable(lines, getAttr) {
         });
         html += '</tbody>\n';
     }
-    
+
     html += '</table>';
     return html;
 }
 
+// ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+//  List processing (line walker)
+// ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+
 /**
- * Process markdown lists (ordered and unordered)
+ * processLists — line walker for ordered, unordered, and task lists
+ *
+ * Scans each line for list markers (-, *, +, 1., 2., etc.) with
+ * optional leading indentation for nesting.  Non-list lines close
+ * any open lists and pass through unchanged.
+ *
+ * Task lists (- [ ] / - [x]) are detected and rendered with
+ * checkbox inputs.
+ *
+ * @param {string}   text         Full document text
+ * @param {Function} getAttr      Attribute factory
+ * @param {boolean}  inline_styles Whether to use inline styles
+ * @param {boolean}  bidirectional Whether to add data-qd markers
+ * @returns {string}              Text with lists rendered
  */
 function processLists(text, getAttr, inline_styles, bidirectional) {
-    
     const lines = text.split('\n');
     const result = [];
-    const listStack = []; // Track nested lists
-    
+    const listStack = [];   // tracks nesting: [{type:'ul', level:0}, …]
+
     // Helper to escape HTML for data-qd attributes. List markers (`-`, `*`,
     // `+`, `1.`, etc.) never contain HTML-special chars, so the replace
     // callback is defensive-only and never actually fires in practice.
+    /* istanbul ignore next - defensive: list markers never trigger escaping */
     const escapeHtml = (text) => text.replace(/[&<>"']/g,
         /* istanbul ignore next - defensive: list markers never contain HTML specials */
         m => ({'&':'&amp;','<':'&lt;','>':'&gt;','"':'&quot;',"'":'&#39;'})[m]);
     /* istanbul ignore next - trivial no-op fallback; not exercised via bd bundle */
     const dataQd = bidirectional ? (marker) => ` data-qd="${escapeHtml(marker)}"` : () => '';
-    
+
     for (let i = 0; i < lines.length; i++) {
         const line = lines[i];
         const match = line.match(/^(\s*)([*\-+]|\d+\.)\s+(.+)$/);
-        
+
         if (match) {
             const [, indent, marker, content] = match;
             const level = Math.floor(indent.length / 2);
             const isOrdered = /^\d+\./.test(marker);
             const listType = isOrdered ? 'ol' : 'ul';
-            
-            // Check for task list items
+
+            // Task list detection (only in unordered lists)
             let listItemContent = content;
             let taskListClass = '';
             const taskMatch = content.match(/^\[([x ])\]\s+(.*)$/i);
             if (taskMatch && !isOrdered) {
                 const [, checked, taskContent] = taskMatch;
                 const isChecked = checked.toLowerCase() === 'x';
-                const checkboxAttr = inline_styles 
-                    ? ' style="margin-right:.5em"' 
+                const checkboxAttr = inline_styles
+                    ? ' style="margin-right:.5em"'
                     : ` class="${CLASS_PREFIX}task-checkbox"`;
                 listItemContent = `<input type="checkbox"${checkboxAttr}${isChecked ? ' checked' : ''} disabled> ${taskContent}`;
                 taskListClass = inline_styles ? ' style="list-style:none"' : ` class="${CLASS_PREFIX}task-item"`;
             }
-            
-            // Close deeper levels
+
+            // Close deeper nesting levels
             while (listStack.length > level + 1) {
                 const list = listStack.pop();
                 result.push(`</${list.type}>`);
             }
-            
-            // Open new level if needed
+
+            // Open new list or switch type at current level
             if (listStack.length === level) {
-                // Need to open a new list
                 listStack.push({ type: listType, level });
                 result.push(`<${listType}${getAttr(listType)}>`);
             } else if (listStack.length === level + 1) {
-                // Check if we need to switch list type
                 const currentList = listStack[listStack.length - 1];
                 if (currentList.type !== listType) {
                     result.push(`</${currentList.type}>`);
@@ -572,11 +825,11 @@ function processLists(text, getAttr, inline_styles, bidirectional) {
                     result.push(`<${listType}${getAttr(listType)}>`);
                 }
             }
-            
+
             const liAttr = taskListClass || getAttr('li');
             result.push(`<li${liAttr}${dataQd(marker)}>${listItemContent}</li>`);
         } else {
-            // Not a list item, close all lists
+            // Not a list item — close all open lists
             while (listStack.length > 0) {
                 const list = listStack.pop();
                 result.push(`</${list.type}>`);
@@ -584,76 +837,76 @@ function processLists(text, getAttr, inline_styles, bidirectional) {
             result.push(line);
         }
     }
-    
-    // Close any remaining lists
+
+    // Close any remaining open lists
     while (listStack.length > 0) {
         const list = listStack.pop();
         result.push(`</${list.type}>`);
     }
-    
+
     return result.join('\n');
 }
 
+// ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+//  Static API
+// ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+
 /**
- * Emit CSS styles for quikdown elements
- * @param {string} prefix - Optional class prefix (default: 'quikdown-')
- * @param {string} theme - Optional theme: 'light' (default) or 'dark'
- * @returns {string} CSS string with quikdown styles
+ * Emit CSS rules for all quikdown elements.
+ *
+ * @param {string} prefix  Class prefix (default: 'quikdown-')
+ * @param {string} theme   'light' (default) or 'dark'
+ * @returns {string}       CSS text
  */
 quikdown.emitStyles = function(prefix = 'quikdown-', theme = 'light') {
     const styles = QUIKDOWN_STYLES;
-    
-    // Define theme color overrides
+
     const themeOverrides = {
         dark: {
-            '#f4f4f4': '#2a2a2a', // pre background
-            '#f0f0f0': '#2a2a2a', // code background
-            '#f2f2f2': '#2a2a2a', // th background
-            '#ddd': '#3a3a3a',    // borders
-            '#06c': '#6db3f2',    // links
+            '#f4f4f4': '#2a2a2a',   // pre background
+            '#f0f0f0': '#2a2a2a',   // code background
+            '#f2f2f2': '#2a2a2a',   // th background
+            '#ddd': '#3a3a3a',      // borders
+            '#06c': '#6db3f2',      // links
             _textColor: '#e0e0e0'
         },
         light: {
-            _textColor: '#333'    // Explicit text color for light theme
+            _textColor: '#333'
         }
     };
-    
+
     let css = '';
     for (const [tag, style] of Object.entries(styles)) {
         let themedStyle = style;
-            
-            // Apply theme overrides if dark theme
-            if (theme === 'dark' && themeOverrides.dark) {
-                // Replace colors
-                for (const [oldColor, newColor] of Object.entries(themeOverrides.dark)) {
-                    if (!oldColor.startsWith('_')) {
-                        themedStyle = themedStyle.replace(new RegExp(oldColor, 'g'), newColor);
-                    }
-                }
-                
-                // Add text color for certain elements in dark theme
-                const needsTextColor = ['h1', 'h2', 'h3', 'h4', 'h5', 'h6', 'td', 'li', 'blockquote'];
-                if (needsTextColor.includes(tag)) {
-                    themedStyle += `;color:${themeOverrides.dark._textColor}`;
-                }
-            } else if (theme === 'light' && themeOverrides.light) {
-                // Add explicit text color for light theme elements too
-                const needsTextColor = ['h1', 'h2', 'h3', 'h4', 'h5', 'h6', 'td', 'li', 'blockquote'];
-                if (needsTextColor.includes(tag)) {
-                    themedStyle += `;color:${themeOverrides.light._textColor}`;
+
+        if (theme === 'dark' && themeOverrides.dark) {
+            for (const [oldColor, newColor] of Object.entries(themeOverrides.dark)) {
+                if (!oldColor.startsWith('_')) {
+                    themedStyle = themedStyle.replaceAll(oldColor, newColor);
                 }
             }
-        
+            const needsTextColor = ['h1', 'h2', 'h3', 'h4', 'h5', 'h6', 'td', 'li', 'blockquote'];
+            if (needsTextColor.includes(tag)) {
+                themedStyle += `;color:${themeOverrides.dark._textColor}`;
+            }
+        } else if (theme === 'light' && themeOverrides.light) {
+            const needsTextColor = ['h1', 'h2', 'h3', 'h4', 'h5', 'h6', 'td', 'li', 'blockquote'];
+            if (needsTextColor.includes(tag)) {
+                themedStyle += `;color:${themeOverrides.light._textColor}`;
+            }
+        }
+
         css += `.${prefix}${tag} { ${themedStyle} }\n`;
     }
-    
+
     return css;
 };
 
 /**
- * Configure quikdown with options and return a function
- * @param {Object} options - Configuration options
- * @returns {Function} Configured quikdown function
+ * Create a pre-configured parser with baked-in options.
+ *
+ * @param {Object} options  Options to bake in
+ * @returns {Function}      Configured quikdown(markdown) function
  */
 quikdown.configure = function(options) {
     return function(markdown) {
@@ -661,18 +914,18 @@ quikdown.configure = function(options) {
     };
 };
 
-/**
- * Version information
- */
+/** Semantic version (injected at build time) */
 quikdown.version = quikdownVersion;
 
-// Export for both CommonJS and ES6
+// ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+//  Exports
+// ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+
 /* istanbul ignore next */
 if (typeof module !== 'undefined' && module.exports) {
     module.exports = quikdown;
 }
 
-// For browser global
 /* istanbul ignore next */
 if (typeof window !== 'undefined') {
     window.quikdown = quikdown;