Nethermind includes extraneous 0x values in eth_getProof responses, breaking cryptographic consistency.

[jwelch-qn]

Description
eth_getProof includes erroneous 0x values that don't make sense

Steps to Reproduce
Calling this eth_getProof request on Nethermind:

curl <Nethermind node URL>  \
  -X POST \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{"method":"eth_getProof","params":["0x3a10dc1a145da500d5fba38b9ec49c8ff11a981f",["0x0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000003","0x0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000004","0x0ddc93f0dfd4cec69030b20fc3c9037ae4a8a3151a4c66b05fa74272b3a48df8", "0x360894a13ba1a3210667c828492db98dca3e2076cc3735a920a3ca505d382bbc","0x90375f0b936c9e37c8e89c250b2c970b724107b72ed642aa819ba7b257516d30","0xb53127684a568b3173ae13b9f8a6016e243e63b6e8ee1178d6a717850b5d6103","0xfd21a1ac9a14dff647460ce8ad2ccecb794a59a4cfbb8678b1f9900a6a99551f","0xfd21a1ac9a14dff647460ce8ad2ccecb794a59a4cfbb8678b1f9900a6a995520","0xfd21a1ac9a14dff647460ce8ad2ccecb794a59a4cfbb8678b1f9900a6a995521","0xfd21a1ac9a14dff647460ce8ad2ccecb794a59a4cfbb8678b1f9900a6a995523"],"0x143212F"],"id":1,"jsonrpc":"2.0"}' |jq

Actual behavior
The proof nodes array includes multiple 0x entries, representing empty nodes. These extra empty nodes imply an unnecessary parent-child relationship between empty nodes, which breaks the cryptographic consistency expected in exclusion proofs.

Expected behavior
The proof nodes array should exclude redundant 0x entries in exclusion proofs, only including relevant nodes that provide a cryptographically verifiable path. Correct exclusion proofs from other clients do not include these extra empty nodes.

Screenshots

Desktop (please complete the following information):

• Operating System: Ubuntu 24.04

• Version: Nethermind/v1.29.1

• Installation Method:Github release

• Consensus Client: Lighthouse

[hashcashier]

@jwelch-qn @MarekM25 @flcl42 thank you!