The 41-year-old Scot turned an overnight 11-5 lead into a 13-6 victory at the Betfred World Championship, and he awaits the winner of the quarter-final between Barry Hawkins and Stephen Maguire.
Before the tournament Higgins was talking a confident game, and he has followed up with a purposeful run through the draw as he targets more silverware in Sheffield.
A pair of centuries and a host of productive scoring visits over 50 meant Higgins gave 25-year-old Kettering cueman Wilson a potting lesson.
Higgins beat Judd Trump to take the 2011 world title, since when his best run had been a quarter-final showing last year.
Higgins was thankful he did not allow Wilson a route back into the match on Wednesday morning, admitting there had been "a little bit of nerves" despite his large lead.
And he is convinced he can secure another world title on Monday night, six years after his last triumph.
"I believe I can, yeah, and it's a great feeling to have. I can - I think," said Higgins.
From the semi-finals onward, the Crucible set-up changes so that rather than the floor featuring two matches concurrently, divided by a partition wall, one table is removed and the other moved to the middle of the arena.
The players romanticise about playing at centre stage, in snooker's most famous venue.
"In the couple of years after what happened in 2011 I've been losing and my form wasn't great, and you think you won't get back to the one-table set-up," Higgins said.
"It's the best place in the world to get out and play, and I can't wait to walk back into the arena and it's just the one table again. I'm buzzing."
Higgins sympathised with Wilson, whose cue tip split in the first session with the match tied at 3-3 and a close contest appearing to be developing.
"He was desperately unlucky," Higgins said. "That's a big moment during the game and obviously for me it's worked out well."
Wilson fixed a new tip but said it was "terrible".
"I like a rock-hard tip and this one felt like a Fruit Pastille," Wilson said.
Of his performance, Wilson added: "I'm so annoyed with myself, so frustrated. But it's a learning curve. I'll be better for next year.
"I'm not in it to make the quarter-finals, I'm in it to win the tournament so until I do I'll never be happy."
Barry Hawkins earned a shot at Higgins, blocking off a possible all-Scottish last-four clash by beating Stephen Maguire 13-9.
Kent cueman Hawkins said after reaching his fourth Crucible semi-final in five years: "It was just a battle, the whole match. If I play anything like I did in this game then I'll get my bum smacked by John."
Maguire said: "I was disheartened to be 11-9 down and I felt the life just drained out of me. I've handed him that match there, he's not won it."
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