diff --git a/src/store/ops.rs b/src/store/ops.rs
index 28459c5..e12cdd1 100644
--- a/src/store/ops.rs
+++ b/src/store/ops.rs
@@ -197,8 +197,8 @@ impl Store {
             }
 
             // Only persist nodes whose weight actually changed
+            // Don't bump version — decay is metadata, not content change
             if (node.weight - old_weight).abs() > 1e-6 {
-                node.version += 1;
                 updated.push(node.clone());
                 decayed += 1;
             }