The dream last-16 match-up is on! After O'Sullivan made no mistakes against He, his long-time rival John Higgins awaits in the next round.
O'Sullivan went into the afternoon session with a comfortable 7-2 lead, but struggled to find his rhythm in the first frame of the day. Despite several missed chances from O'Sullivan, he could only convert them into 19 points before a failed safety shot.
'The Rocket' gratefully accepted the opportunity and took the frame with a break of 62.
With that, O'Sullivan found his rhythm: in the eleventh frame, the record world champion was even on course for a maximum for a while, but after nine reds and eight blacks, he had to switch to blue. It didn't matter for the frame win, as a 113 break secured him a 9-2 lead.
He was visibly out of steam, and the Chinese player had a few chances in the final frame but could only score a single point. O'Sullivan fittingly finished the match with his second consecutive century break (100).
'I'm probably more of the underdog'
"A battle of the old guard," O'Sullivan said when asked about his last-16 tie with Higgins.
"I just said that I feel kind of old here at the venue now, because everyone is 22 or 23 – it's like walking into a nursery. But we're still here, giving it a go.
"I'm not the player I once was, and probably never will be again, but as long as I'm enjoying the game... I'm starting to enjoy it again. I'm striking the ball better, but it's still not quite enough to win these tournaments – I need a bit of luck as well," the ever self-critical O'Sullivan admitted.
The record world champion dismissed any talk of being the favourite against Higgins.
"John likes playing against me. I think he plays better against me than I do against him. In a way, I'm probably more of the underdog because I've barely played in the last three years compared to John. He's probably the favourite."
The highly anticipated match gets underway on Saturday evening, played as a best of 25 over three sessions.