Can I skip `next` in a Chain of Command extension?

Normally, no.

A standard CoC wrapper is expected to call next so the rest of the chain and the base implementation still execute.

The main exception is a method explicitly designed to be replaceable, for example with [Replaceable], where the framework allows conditional suppression of next.

For normal business customizations, assume you need to call next. If your design depends on preventing standard code from running, make sure the method explicitly supports that behavior instead of trying to work around CoC rules.