From Sherman Amon, An Encyclopedic History of the Cities and Empires of Sapience, Vol 2

Despite the sinister prophecy of Lehrinas, the Selucarian Empire entered a period of peace and prosperity that lasted for over four centuries. During this time, the Empire strengthened its trade relationships with every city and town on the continent, and the three major cities of Seleucar, Ashtan, and Shallam became even larger and more metropolitan than ever before.

Proud of having survived the Black Wave without the help of the Church, the city of Ashtan came to believe that personal human will was as important as the power of the gods, and that there was no need for an intermediary force such as the Church. The mysterious Occultists, although still distrusted and feared, came to occupy many positions of power in Ashtan, which caused the Church to issue formal statements against Ashtan. Although these statements were minor in comparison to the insults, threats, and outright warfare that would occur constantly after the fall of the Empire, it is clear that even during the height of the Selucarian Empire, Ashtan and Shallam never had a cordial relationship.

In contrast to Ashtan, Shallam embraced the Church even more firmly than it had before, due to the influence of the shrines in the defense of the city during the Black Wave. Whereas Ashtan's philosophers spoke of the power of the individual human to change his own life and surroundings, the Shallamese philosophers averred that only by subjecting themselves to higher wisdom and serving the greater good could humans ever improve their lots permanently.

In Seleucar, the philosopher-king Artaius attempted to promulgate his own philosophy: that men and women of personal power and diverse backgrounds, working together to serve ideals mutually agreed upon, could make far more difference in the world than powerful but undisciplined individuals or static congregations of orderly followers. In essence, Emperor Artaius tried to reconcile the viewpoints of Ashtan and Shallam, but although his views were accepted publicly through his lifetime and for centuries afterward, the old conflicts between Ashtan and Shallam were always waiting below the surface.