Defending champion Littler averaged a staggering 105.38 on his way to defeating Wessel Nijman 10-4, booking his spot in the final eight, where he will face Northern Irishman Josh Rock.
The youngster powered into a 5-0 lead before Nijman battled back with three of the next four sets - but Littler ultimately went on to secure his spot in the next round in typically impressive fashion.
"I had to switch on tonight. I've won titles like the World Matchplay coming back from 5-0 down, but tonight I wanted to prove a point and start strongly," Littler explained.
"I know if I get to the final, I'll be world number one, so I'm taking it game by game and hopefully Josh and I can have another great game like we did at the World Matchplay."
The shock of the night came when three-time champion Van Gerwen fell to a 10-6 loss at the hands of fellow Dutchman Noppert.
An even start to the match saw Noppert lead 6-5 after the 11th set, with the world number 11 going on to break Van Gerwen's throw in the 13th and power to his eventual victory.
"It was a rollercoaster. I think I coped well under pressure, so I'm really happy," Noppert said.
"Over the whole game, I played well. Everything went my way, but in the end I was a little bit nervous."
Elsewhere, Rock booked his spot in the quarters by beating Connor Scutt 10-9 and Lukas Wenig came out on top against fellow German Niko Springer with a narrow 10-8 victory.