Do We Really Need a Sect? | Struggling With the Idea

Assalamualaikum everyone. I’ve been thinking about this a lot and wanted to get others’ opinions. I’m genuinely confused about whether we actually need to be part of a specific sect in Islam. Not asking how sects came about, but whether it’s necessary to follow one. Honestly, I’ve always stayed away from labeling myself. I just learn from whatever source seems sound, then check if it’s backed by Quran or authentic hadith. But recently some friends told me you have to pick a sect-that it’s needed. When I brought up how the Prophet ﷺ disliked division among Muslims, they turned that into an argument about the 73 sects and how only one will enter Jannah, the one that truly follows him ﷺ and Allah’s commands. I reminded them of the verse about holding tightly to the rope of Allah and not splitting up (3:103), plus the hadith about Muslims being like one body where if one part hurts, the whole body feels it. But they said if I keep refusing to pick a sect, I’ll just end up making my own. Their point was that it’s not about wanting a sect but knowing what rulings you follow-like it’s a practical thing in our time. When I asked if they really think the sect they follow is guaranteed paradise, their reply was kind of weak and too long to repeat here. We ended things by agreeing that arguing about this only pulls us away from real priorities, and I quoted the general idea from Surah Baqarah about avoiding pointless debates (don’t remember the exact verse, sorry). So honestly, my question is: do we actually need to be in a sect?