This is the most embarrassing picture I’ve sent on here

I got a dead-looking jade plant from my partner a few weeks ago. I repotted it and found that the roots looked okay, but were smooshed into a tiny cube. I soaked the root ball to get out some packed-in soil, and tried to spread out the roots using a wooden skewer.

The third picture is how it looked a few weeks ago. The top of the plant has been looking even deader recently, so I cut off the dead branches and the top of the stem. And now I’m left with this (pictures #1-2)

Do I keep cutting? The top still feels sponges. If there is only a trunk, where would the plant even continue growing from?
Should I just call it quits and toss it out?

(It’s in a south-east facing window where it gets sun all day. I watered it fully when I got it a few weeks ago and soil is still moist)