Bayar and Gerel, recent university graduates, meet on a bench beneath the Sukhbaatar monument, their uneasy friendship foreshadowing the emotional stakes of the story. Bayar then joins a mixed Mongolian‑Russian scientific expedition led by Professor Bat—alongside geologist Erdene, Russian geologist Panov, collector Tomor and driver Ider—to survey the remote Bichig Bogd region, but the party lacks reliable local guides and soon confronts harsh steppe conditions. A wolf ambush and a sudden sandstorm leave Bayar and Panov injured, compass‑less, and forced to survive a night in a shallow stone shelter while the rest of the group splits, contends with mysterious electric storms, and hears mythic tales from the reluctant 80‑year‑old former guide Damdin, even as Bat experiences a bizarre, blue‑gray transformation. In the midst of these trials Bayar discovers a luminous molybdenite (MoS₂) vein that emits electric discharges, confirming the frantic notes in his notebook and driving the team’s final geological work despite dwindling supplies. The expedition returns to Ulaanbaatar, and Bayar is appointed head of a new department to study the Biligt Bogd molybdenum deposit, bringing the saga to a close on 22 March 1951.