There seem to be a few common themes between the arise of major empires during the classical era, which include the Persian, Chinese, Mauryan, and Roman Empires.
The first is that they all follow a period of complete and utter chaos. Cyrus the Great conquered the Persian Empire after the fall of the Assyrian and Babylonian Empires. China was united when the first emperor Qin ended the Period of Warring States in 221 BCE. The Mauryan Empire formed after periods of war where Darius and Alexander the Great conquered and were forced to leave India. The Roman Empire was formed after the assassination of Julius Caeser, where civil war broke out, leading to a period of chaos that was ultimately ended when Octavian, Caeser's nephew, took power and declared himself emperor. Every single empire formed after a period of war or of chaos.
The second trend seen in the formation of empires is the standardization of different systems (roads, currency, weights and measures, etc.). Ancient Persia set up the "Royal Road", which allowed them to trade with as far away as India and China, as well as the standardization of Persian coins throughout the empire. China standardized writing, weights and measures, currency, language and set up one of the biggest trading routes of the time, the silk road. The Mauryans had set up both land and sea trade routes extending from the Mediterranean to the East China Sea. The Romans set up roads and outposts all over their empire, which led to the saying "All roads lead to Rome", as well as spreading Roman culture to many parts of the empire.
These two along with many more factors led to the formation of empires during the classical era.
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