How did this sect fall into poverty like this...
This is gonna be a weird rant from me but. This has always been a problem between people who are selfless and people who are greedy.
It's the part of Daoism and Toaists, that lead them down to poverty. Sorta like Buddhism teachings. Greed is bad and Gluttony and pride and lust are things that people should throw away to seek "Enlightenment"
. It can indeed lead to poverty and essentially the end. Pretty much negligence.
Having these needs and wants aren't a good thing at an extreme level but throwing them away and calling them bad is not good either. It's all about balance. Which they were lacking.