Would it be possible to return back to the latest stable phase without losing any data or settings?
Maybe. As long as you enabled Time Machine, try the following:
- Boot macOS Recovery.
- At the Mac OS Utilities screen, select "Restore From Time Machine Backup" > Continue. A Restore from Time Machine screen will appear. Read it then Continue.
- When the Select a Restore Source screen appears, select the internal disk. Its default name is "Macintosh HD" but you may have changed it. Continue.
- The Select a Local Snapshot screen appears next. Restore From > Local Snapshots on Macintosh HD (or whatever you named its startup disk) will appear in the dropdown menu selection.
- If a Local Snapshot Date & Time list populates, select one that corresponds to the "stable phase" you describe. Continue.
- A confirmation dialog will appear. Read it then Continue.
- A Restoring screen will appear next. That operation won't take long.
- A Success screen will appear next, and the Mac will restart.